"Migraine Patients Mostly Women and Middle-Aged... Acupuncture Treatment Most Used"

The number of migraine patients in Korea is nearly three times higher in women than in men, with a higher incidence rate among middle-aged individuals. Acupuncture was the most commonly used treatment method.

An oriental medicine doctor is performing acupuncture treatment on a patient with migraine.
[Photo by Jaseng Hospital of Korean Medicine]

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The research team led by Hanui-sa Lee Su-gyeong from Jaseng Hospital of Korean Medicine Spine and Joint Research Institute announced on the 10th that they analyzed the distribution and medical utilization status of migraine patients in Korea using data from the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service. This paper was published in the March issue of the SCI(E)-level international journal BMJ Open (IF=3.007).

The research team selected 117,157 patients who were diagnosed with migraine and received at least one Korean medicine or Western medicine treatment from January 2010 to December 2018, a total of nine years, through random stratified sampling as the study subjects.

Analysis of demographic characteristics showed that women (72.9%) were 2.7 times more numerous than men (27.1%). The age groups were in the order of 45?54 years (21.3%), 35?44 years (18.2%), and 55?64 years (15.9%), with the 35?54 age group accounting for nearly 40%.

Regarding the medical utilization details of migraine patients, 99% were concentrated on outpatient treatment. The research team interpreted this as outpatient treatment overwhelmingly dominating because, unlike musculoskeletal diseases, migraine does not restrict patient mobility and is mostly chronic. The total treatment cost due to migraine increased by 85.6%, from $921,858 in 2010 to $1,711,220 in 2018.

Korean Medicine Doctor Lee Su-kyung.
Photo by Jaseng Hospital of Korean Medicine

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Next, examining the number of treatment cases for Korean medicine and Western medicine respectively, acupuncture, which corresponds to Korean medicine treatment, was used the most over nine years with 166,430 cases. This was followed by subcutaneous or intramuscular injections in Western medicine with 57,942 cases. Among Korean medicine treatments, after acupuncture, thermal-cold meridian therapy (50,715 cases), moxibustion treatment (37,573 cases), and dry cupping (30,503 cases) were performed.

The research team also analyzed trends in medications used for migraine treatment. As a result, simple analgesics such as acetaminophen and acetylsalicylic acid, as well as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), accounted for 54.9%. The number of prescriptions for migraine preventive medications increased about 1.5 times, from 13,600 cases in 2010 to 20,546 cases in 2018.

Hanui-sa Lee Su-gyeong said, "This study is significant in that it analyzed the medical status of migraine by distinguishing between Korean medicine and Western medicine, reflecting Korea's dualized healthcare system," adding, "It can also be used as basic data in suggesting the direction for national health policies, such as determining health insurance fees and budgeting related to migraine-related diseases in the future."

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