부산대학교 도서관

Objective : Migraine is a common disease with a high annual prevalence of 8.4%, and the degree of pain can be so severe that it significantly interferes with the affected individual’s quality of life. However, because migraines are common, many people might continue to work without informing anyone. In this study, we conducted a survey of the prevalence of headaches among hospital employees to examine their work environment. Subjects and Methods : Data collection was conducted using an anonymous questionnaire survey method for employees working at Tokyo Rosai Hospital. We recorded the prevalence of headaches, type of work, and work schedule of the employee. In those reporting headaches, we also recorded the number of missed work days due to headache, number of work days they intended to but were unable to take time off, their subjective ability to work when they had a headache, whether their supervisors and coworkers appeared understanding and sympathetic, interference with their daily lives, their headache triggers, whether they visited an outpatient clinic for headaches, and medication use and the type of medication. Results : Of the 566 respondents, 401 (70.8%) reported having headaches and 165 (29.2%) reported having no headaches. Among females, 348 had headaches and 104 had no headache, and among males, 53 had headaches and 61 had no headache, thereby being significantly more common in women than in men (p<0.01)．Compared to individuals in other occupations, nurses were significantly more likely to report headaches (p<0.01)．A total of 265 nurses (78.9%) reported having headaches and 71 nurses (21.1%) reported no headaches. With regard to consideration at work, 53.6% of the staff answered, “I don’t say anything, I keep quiet”. In addition, less than 5% of the respondents reported having ever left work early or missed work due to a headache. Conclusions : Although the ability to work is reduced by headaches, employees continue to quietly work while experiencing a headache and most are unlikely to leave work early or miss work. Even for common illnesses such as headache, presenteeism with strong symptoms and reduced work capacity is a problem. It is important to improve the understanding of headache and poor health in the workplace and to foster an environment that allows employees to take a break when required.