title: Scuba diving is not associated with high prevalence of headache: a cross-sectional study in men.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To study the prevalence of cephalalgia in male divers.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  Scuba divers work in stressing environments and have a high cerebrovascular risk, both conditions which are supposed to contribute to the genesis of cephalalgia. However, no study assessed expressly the prevalence of cephalalgia in divers, to date.
  
  
  METHODS
  We enrolled 201 professional male scuba divers (41.0 ± 7.2 years) and controls (41.1 ± 7.2 years), and the risk ratio and its corresponding 95% confidence of suffering from cephalalgia was calculated.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We found that 16% of divers and 22% of matched controls were affected by cephalalgia (P > .05), accounting for a risk ratio of 0.71 (95% CI 0.47-1.07). Divers reported fewer attacks per month (1.8 ± 0.7, n = 32) with regard to controls (2.5 ± 1.8, n = 45) (P = .02), but no differences concerning age at onset and severity were detected (P > .05). Divers suffered from migraine, migraine with aura and tension headache as much as controls.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Scuba diving, an intense physical activity characterized by cerebral micro-vascular distress, is not associated with cephalalgia, as a whole, or migraine, tension headache or migraine with aura, more commonly than in a matched, non-diving, population. A longitudinal study may disclose if diving may act as a protective factor in the occurrence of crises of cephalalgia.
authors: Department of Medico-Surgical Sciences and Biotechnologies, Sapienza University of Rome, Latina, Italy. rodifa@gmail.com
authors: Roberto
authors: R
authors: Di Fabio
authors: Nicola
authors: N
authors: Vanacore
authors: Chiara
authors: C
authors: Davassi
authors: Mariano
authors: M
authors: Serrao
authors: Francesco
authors: F
authors: Pierelli
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004242:Diving / Q000009:adverse effects*; D006261:Headache / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires