The VA hosts many services, programs, and treatments to aid veterans who suffer from different types of headache disorders, including the 27 VHA Headache Centers of Excellence. 

These centers can be a collaboration between a Comprehensive Pain Center, Neurology Service and TBI/Polytrauma Clinic. Please work with your primary care provider for the appropriate referral(s).

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Your Care Team may include

Physiatry	Neurology	Pain medicine
Brain injury medicine	Case management	Clinical pharmacist
Chiropractic	Occupational therapy	Recreation therapy
Physical therapy	Psychology	Vision therapy
Other consultative services

Debilitating headache and migraine affect 16% of all Veterans receiving care in the Veterans Health Administration (VHA). 

• From October 1, 2027, to September 30, 2022, almost 1.9 million veterans were diagnosed and treated within VHA for migraine and headache attacks.
  • In 2022, nearly 460,000 veterans sought care in the VHA for a headache disorder
  • More than 20% of veterans with a headache diagnosis accessed VA Emergency Department services for headache pain treatment

• Burn pits can have an effect on migraine and headache.^[1]
  • A Veteran who lived near burn pits with burn pit duties during deployment is:  
    • 56% more likely to be diagnosed by a health care provider with a headache condition
    • 93% more likely to self-report having severe headache or migraine
  • A Veteran who lived near burn pits without burn pit duties during deployment is:
    • 44% more likely to be diagnosed by a health care provider with a headache condition
    • 23% more likely to self-report having severe headache or migraine 

Forty percent of Veterans report chronic headache attacks

• Post-traumatic headache occurs in up to 92% of active duty military who have sustained a mild traumatic brain injury and are more likely to have chronic headache.^[5]
• “More than half a million veterans were diagnosed with migraine between 2008 and 2019. This is over 5% of the 10.8 million veterans who are in the VHA; 27.8% women and 72.2% men.^[3]
• In this group of veterans with migraine, men were three times more likely to have experienced a TBI than women.”