Commentary
Video
Shaping the Future of Medical Research Using Insights From the Headache Community: Amynah Pradhan, PhD
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The associate professor of psychiatry at the University of Illinois at Chicago talked about the importance of diverse insight and perspectives from the headache community in shaping medical research priorities. [WATCH TIME: 3 minutes]
WATCH TIME: 3 minutes
“At the end of the day, if you don't have people who are coming into the field excited to work on those things, it's not going to matter. Or if you don't have a diverse population of patients that you're working on, or researchers in the field, that can be a problem. I think in that sense, those working groups really captured a very holistic perspective on what's important in terms of research in the field.”
Headache is one of the more common presenting complaints in outpatient care, with more than 200 varieties described.1 One of the challenging tasks in the headache field is timely diagnosis and prescribing appropriate treatment for the patients’ symptoms. Several in the field have felt as though prioritizing certain aspects of headache research may help work through some of these challenges. Surveys, questionnaires, and interviews have all been thought of as effective approaches to curate future research in migraine.
In a plenary session at the 2023 American Headache Society (AHS) Annual Meeting, June 15-18, in Austin, Texas,Amynah Pradhan, PhD, copresented a talk about priorities in health research in relation to migraine. In her presentation, she discussed the importance of commentary from the public to help prioritize important aspects of research that not only bring a sense of community in migraine but also aid with paving the way for future advancements in the treatment and management of headache.2
Following her talk, Pradhan sat down with NeurologyLive® at the meeting to talk about how the different types of working groups in medical research can help contribute to a more holistic perspective on research priorities. She also spoke about the reason for why inclusion, diversity, and workforce development are crucial in shaping the future of medical research. Additionally, Pradhan explained how public input can influence and streamline research priorities and funding for migraine.
Click here for more coverage of AHS 2023.
REFERENCES
1. May A. Hints on Diagnosing and Treating Headache. Dtsch Arztebl Int. 2018;115(17):299-308. doi:10.3238/arztebl.2018.0299
2. Pradhan A, Schwedt T. Health Research Priorities. Presented at: AHS Annual Meeting, 2023; June 15-18; Austin, TX. Plenary 1.
