Association of Migraine Headache With Depression, Anxiety, and Stress in the Population of Makkah City, Saudi Arabia: A Cross-Sectional Study

• Published in: Curēus (Palo Alto, CA) Vol. 15; no. 5; p. e39788
• Main Authors: Babateen, Omar, Althobaiti, Fadi S, Alhazmi, Mohannad A, Al-Ghamdi, Eyad, Alharbi, Faeqah, Moffareh, Alshaymaa K, Matar, Fay M, Tawakul, Abdullah, Samkari, Jamil A
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Cureus Inc 31-05-2023; Cureus
• Subjects: Age; Anxiety; Cross-sectional studies; Education; Females; Gender; Headaches; Internal Medicine; Marital status; Mental depression; Migraine; Mortality; Neurology; Patients; Psychiatry; Questionnaires; Sample size; Sociodemographics; Stress; Saudi Arabia; cross sectional; saudi arabia; anxiety; dass-21; stress; makkah city; migraine; association; depression; ichd-3
• ISSN: 2168-8184; 2168-8184
• DOI: 10.7759/cureus.39788

Introduction Migraine is characterized by persistent headaches and a wide range of symptoms, such as nausea, vomiting, and photophobia. The chance of developing a chronic migraine might be increased by lifestyle variables like obesity, stress, and excessive medication use. According to previous studies in Saudi Arabia, migraines are more common there than they are globally. The study aimed to examine the migraine associations with depression, anxiety, and stress in the population of Makkah City, Saudi Arabia. Methods The study employed a descriptive cross-sectional design with a non-probability snowball sampling technique and an online questionnaire that included sociodemographic characteristics, the International Classification of Headache Disorders-3 (ICHD-3) criteria for migraine assessment, and the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21) measure for depression, anxiety, and stress. Results Our study included 418 participants, out of whom 73.7% were female and 26.3% were male. Regarding migraine, only 8.9% of participants met the ICHD-3 criteria for migraine headache screening, with a female predominance (78.4%). The study showed a high prevalence of depression, anxiety, and stress among the population (63.9%, 63.6%, and 55%, respectively), with females having a higher prevalence. Depression, anxiety, and stress had an equal prevalence of 78.4% among migraineurs, which was significantly higher than that of non-migraineurs. Conclusions The study found significant associations between migraine and depression, anxiety, and stress. This study provides insights into the association between these conditions. The study's findings suggest the need for screening and management of mental health conditions in patients with migraine. However, extensive efforts are needed to be applied in different cities and demographics for a more precise understanding of the association.