Analysis of cluster headaches: More and more people are affected
11.08.2025 17:17
More and more people in Germany are being diagnosed with cluster headaches. These headaches occur on one side of the head with extremely severe nighttime attacks of pain in the temples and eyes. It primarily affects men, but women can also suffer from this headache, the third most common type after migraines and tension headaches. This is according to a recent analysis by the BARMER Institute for Health Systems Research (bifg).
While around 43,000 people were diagnosed with cluster headaches in 2010, by 2023 there were already 74,800 affected. This corresponds to an increase of 74 percent. Among men, the number of cases rose from around 27,100 to just under 44,800, and among women from just over 15,900 to around 30,000. "Cluster headaches were largely ignored for a long time and are now receiving more attention. That's right. After all, the extremely painful attacks not only impair those affected's sleep but also severely limit their overall quality of life. Therefore, tailored medical assistance is urgently required," says Prof. Dr. med. Christoph Straub, CEO of BARMER, said: "Individualized treatment concepts are needed, which are best developed with specialists in headache clinics. Conventional headache medications are not very effective for cluster headaches, and oxygen inhalation can end an attack in some cases."
Mainly middle-aged people affected
According to a BARMER analysis, cluster headaches primarily affect people between the ages of 40 and 69. Between 2010 and 2023, the number of cases in this group rose from just under 26,700 to around 47,700 diagnoses. "Cluster headaches are fatal because they often begin at night, deprive people of sleep, and can occur in attacks lasting several hours. This is even more problematic if there is no opportunity for recovery during the day," says Straub.
Significant regional differences
As the BARMER analysis further shows, there are clear regional differences in the occurrence of cluster headaches. In 2023, the diagnosis was most frequently made in Bremen and Rhineland-Palatinate, with 14.4 and 12.5 affected individuals per 10,000 people, respectively, and least frequently in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and Saxony, with 8.3 and 8.5 per 10,000 people, respectively.