Research shows that natural disasters can cause unseen damage to our brains

Japanese researchers monitored the National Health Insurance Claims Database for the year before and after the 2018 Floods in Japan and found an increase in prescriptions for acute migraines in the worst-hit southwestern counties, suggesting an increase

Acute migraine attacks can be caused by sleep disturbances and psychological stress, and can occur in large numbers when natural disasters strike

In the study, published in the journal Headache, the researchers said: "Natural disasters have some negative effects on the mental health of affected populations, such as post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and sleep disorders

"These disaster-related mental disorders often lead to a variety of physical consequences, such as cardiovascular disease and peptic ulcer disease, as these physical conditions are closely linked to

As the world experiences more frequent and devastating natural disasters, researchers believe it is necessary to improve our understanding

The researchers conducted a retrospective longitudinal cohort study and looked at tritan and ergotamine prescriptions for the treatment of acute migraines entered into the National Health Insurance Claims

Of the 6,176,299 people registered in the national database, about 3,475,515 lived in the areas observed by the study, of whom about 3,475,515 were between the ages of

The findings showed that about 3447356 of those who participated in the study had not previously received treatment for acute migraines – 15,933 of them were in the victim group and 3431423 were in the non-victim group

Of the affected population, 0.

"The 2018 floods in Japan, the second-worst disaster of the century in Japan, increased the number of prescriptions for acute migraine medications for victims

"Natural disasters are a risk factor for acute migraine attacks," he said

At the same time, the researchers found that among those who already had acute migraine attacks, more patients doubled or more

Based on their findings, Matsumoto advocated providing a sufficient amount of acute migraine medication in post-disaster affected areas

He added: "Doctors should educate migraine sufferers on how to cope with migraine attacks in natural disasters

The researchers say further prospective studies should be conducted in patients diagnosed with migraine to confirm their results

Other members of the research team include Dr.