Clinical features, disease progression, and use of healthcare resources in a large sample of 866 patients from 24 headache centers: A real‐life perspective from the Italian chROnic migraiNe (IRON) project

Objective To develop a dedicated Italian chronic migraine (CM) database (IRON project) to overcome disease misconceptions, improve clinical administration, reduce patients’ burden, and rationalize economic resource allotment. Background Proper CM management requires a comprehensive appraisal of its full clinical, social, and economic complexity. Methods In this cross‐sectional study, CM patients were screened in 24 certified headache centers with face‐to‐face interviews. Information on sociodemographic factors, medical history, characteristics of CM, and of prior episodic migraine (EM), and healthcare resource use was gathered using a semistructured web‐based questionnaire. Results A total of 866 CM patients were enrolled. CM started ~20 years after EM onset (age at EM onset 17.4 ± 9.1 vs. age at CM onset 35.3 ± 12.5 [mean ± SD]). CM prophylaxis, used by 430/866 (49.6%) of the patients, was often ineffective, not tolerated, and prematurely discontinued. Medications and diagnostic workup, frequently inappropriate, were mostly subsidized by the Italian national health service. CM patients with ≥25 headache days/month revealed substantial clinical differences and heavier disability and economic burden compared with those with