Doctors know that people suffering from migraine have a higher risk of suicide. However, according to the new research of Danish scientists, this risk is also associated with much milder types of chronic headaches. People suffering from any kind of headache, even bearable, face a higher risk of suicide attempt.
“In patients who live in constant pain, up to twice the likelihood of trying to take life,“The authors of the study, which was published in the scientific journal Jama Neurology, said. Although the link between suicide and extreme migraines or cluster headaches has been detected earlier, New findings show that even common tension headaches can be a risk factor.
“Screening and early identification of depressive symptoms and suicidal ideas in patients with headaches could help identify risk groups,” Danish scientists warned.
Researchers from the University Hospital in Aarhus in Denmark analyzed data from nearly 120,000 people over 15 years of age, diagnosed with headaches in Denmark. They compared the results with 600,000 people who did not suffer from these difficulties. They followed the study participants for fifteen years between 1995 and 2020. The results showed that 0.78 % of people suffering from headaches tried to suicide, while in the control group it was only 0.33 %; 0.21 % of people suffering from headaches actually committed suicide, while in a group of people who did not suffer from headaches, it was 0.15 % – difference 40 %.
