Cyberchondria in Migraine: The Role of Disease Burden and Medication Overuse.

BACKGROUND

Cyberchondria refers to repetitive online searching for health-related information associated with increased health anxiety and distress. Migraine burden and health-related concerns may predispose individuals to cyberchondria. Understanding factors associated with cyberchondria in people with migraine may help identify those with higher disease burden and problematic health-seeking behaviours.

METHODS

This cross-sectional study included 150 people with migraine and 150 healthy controls. Participants completed the Cyberchondria Severity Scale-Short Form (CSS-12), Health Anxiety Inventory, Beck Depression Inventory, MIDAS, and HIT-6. Adjusted comparisons, correlations, and regression analyses were used to identify factors associated with cyberchondria severity.

RESULTS

Cyberchondria scores were higher in the migraine group than in the control group (p = 0.008) and remained significant after adjustment (p = 0.009). Health Anxiety Inventory scores were associated with cyberchondria scores in both groups (p = 0.016; p < 0.001). In the migraine group, cyberchondria scores were associated with clinical burden indicators (all p < 0.01) but not with disease duration (p = 0.954) and were higher in those with chronic migraine and medication overuse (both p < 0.001). In regression analyses, medication overuse was the only independent predictor of cyberchondria scores (p = 0.003).

CONCLUSION

Cyberchondria is higher in people with migraine and cannot be explained solely by health anxiety or depressive symptoms. While health anxiety is closely related to cyberchondria, medication overuse and cyberchondria may reflect interrelated maladaptive behavioural patterns within the context of migraine burden. Evaluating these patterns together with migraine burden may help identify problematic health-seeking and disease-management behaviours.

SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT: This study highlights repetitive online health information seeking as a clinically relevant behavioural dimension in migraine. By showing that cyberchondria is elevated independently of depression and health anxiety and is linked to migraine burden and medication overuse, the findings suggest that digital health behaviour may help identify maladaptive disease-management patterns that are often overlooked in routine migraine care.