ArticleThe journal of headache and pain2026
Interictal burden, not ictal burden, drives work productivity impairment in headache disorders: insights from a Japanese cross-sectional study.
Article in The journal of headache and pain, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
4 citing papers in PubMed.
- Two-Year Outcomes and Interictal Burden After Treatment for Medication Overuse Headache.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Article
- Central sensitization, work-related stress, and musculoskeletal pain symptoms in desk-based workers with and without migraine: a cross-sectional study.The journal of headache and pain · 2026Observational
- Trends in self-reported headache disorder in Spain between 2006 and 2023: the role of sociodemographic factors.BMC public health · 2026Article
- Static and dynamic functional connectivity of the bilateral insula in patients with migraine without aura: a resting-state fMRI study.Frontiers in neurology · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
13 authors.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveHeadache disorders cause work productivity and activity impairment (WPAI). There are two distinct types of burden caused by headache disorders: interictal burden measured by Migraine Interictal Burden Scale-4 (MIBS-4) and ictal burden measured by Headache Impact Test-6 (HIT-6). However, the impact of interictal burden on WPAI remains unclear. This study aimed to investigate whether MIBS-4 score (interictal burden) is associated with WPAI among individuals with headache disorders, in contrast to HIT-6 score (ictal burden).
methodsWe conducted a school-based online survey of students’ parents in Tsubame City, Japan, in 2024. The questionnaire included age, sex, headache characteristics, MIBS-4 and HIT-6 scores, and overall work productivity impairment (OWPI) assessed using the WPAI questionnaire. A structural equation model (SEM) evaluated the effects of MIBS-4 and HIT-6 scores on OWPI. The headache diagnosis was solely based on the questionnaire.
resultsAmong 5,227 households, 21.6% (1,127) responded, and 678 responses from parents with headache disorders were analyzed (median age 43, IQR: 39–47 years; 92.9% female). Median MIBS-4 score was 4 (2–6), HIT-6 score 58 (53–64), and OWPI 20.0% (10.0% – 30.0%). Only MIBS-4 score was significantly associated with OWPI (standardized coefficients [β] = 0.23, 95% CI: [0.14–0.33]), whereas HIT-6 score was not (β = 0.06, [-0.03–0.16]). Younger age, female sex, longer duration of headache, more monthly headache days, moderate/severe pain, presence of nausea/vomiting, photophobia, phonophobia, and osmophobia were directly associated with MIBS-4 score, and these clinical characteristics indirectly associated OWPI mediated via MIBS-4 score, whereas HIT-6 was not.
conclusionsOWPI was associated with MIBS-4 score (interictal burden), not HIT-6 score (ictal burden). Additionally, clinical characteristics are indirectly associated with OWPI mediated via MIBS-4 score. The stronger link between MIBS-4 and WPAI may be due to the persistent nature of psychological symptoms during the interictal period, which imposes a daily burden. The gender imbalance in this study may limit the generalizability of the findings to male workers, suggesting that workplace interventions may need to consider gender-specific burdens. Nevertheless, to improve OWPI, greater emphasis should be placed on addressing interictal burden.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.