Prevalence of headache and associated factors among adolescents: results of a population-based study.

Abstract

Cephalalgia is one of the most common somatic complaints related to health problems in childhood and adolescence. To measure the cephalalgia prevalence in adolescents from the city of São Paulo, Brazil, and associated factors. This is a cross-sectional population-based study, carried out in 2015, with 539 adolescents of both sexes, aged between 15 and 19 years. The information was collected in a household survey, and the participants were selected from probabilistic sampling. Frequencies, χ2 test and logistic regression analysis were used in the study, and significance level was 5%. the estimated prevalence of cephalalgia was 38.2% (95%CI 33.8 - 42.7), and 7.8% (95%CI 5.6 - 10.7), migraine. The associated factors for cephalalgia were: female sex (OR = 2.2; 95%CI 1.4 - 3.4), Common Mental Disorder (OR = 2.8; 95%CI 1.7 - 4.9), vision impairment (OR = 2.6; 95%CI 1.6 - 4.2), besides back pain (OR = 2.2; 95%CI 1.3 - 3.5), sinusitis (OR = 2.0; 95%CI 1.2 - 3.4) and incomplete elementary education (OR = 3.0; 95%CI 1.6 - 5.6). The prevalence of headache among adolescents in the city of São Paulo represented more than 1/3 (one third) of this population. The main associated factors were sex, low schooling and the following comorbidities: common mental disorder and vision impairment.