TENSION HEADACHE, CLINICAL MANIFESTATIONS AND IMPACT ON THE QUALITY OF LIFE OF STUDENTS OF THE BURDENKO STATE MEDICAL UNIVERSITY
Tension headache (THa) is the most common type of primary headache. The prevalence of THa in the world is 42% [1]. Its appearance is caused by various reasons. 1) Tension of the muscles of the shoulder girdle, neck (prolonged stay in a monotonous or non-physiological position). Tension of the scalp causes vasospasm which increased pain. 2) Stressful situations in which the tone of the muscles increases. 3) Sleep disturbance, as a result of which the central nervous system (CNS) does not have time to fully recover. There are clinical types of tension-type headache: episodic (ETHa), chronic (CTHa). ETHa lasts from 30 minutes to a week. CTHa can be daily and non-stop, occurs at least 15 days a month for more than 3 months [2]. They are squeezing - "helmet of a neurasthenic" ("helmet of a Beard"). The pain is usually diffuse, bilateral, and does not increase with physical exertion. Pain can be transient/permanent, with tension in the occipital region, the back of the neck, and in the shoulders. The aim of this research work: is to identify the approximate number of students of the Faculty of General Medicine studying at the Burdenko State Medical University, who note the signs of ETHa or CTHa, to determine whether these headaches affect their academic performance and ability to work. Methods: The data for the statistic analysis were obtained using the questionnaire method. The Guseynov`s questionnaire (T.Y Guseynov is the research at the State Scientific Center for Laser Medicine of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation) was used to recognizing the approximate type of headache. Students were asked questions: 1) do you think that pain affects your academic performance/ability to work? 2) are you capable of purposeful productive activities? 3) is your academic performance / ability to work getting worse/better? Results: Above 170 people participated in the survey (145 had THa). Conclusions: THa occupies a leading place among cephalgias in the surveyed students, with their ability to learn/work is not impaired, the quality of life (QoL) doesn`t suffer.