The Japanese Headache Society led from November 15th. will hold its 40th anniversary congress in Tokyo from November 18, 2012. This special congress was attended by more than 2,000 Japanese neurologists and headache experts. At the invitation of the President of the Japanese Headache Society and former President of the International Headache Society, Prof. Fumihiko Sakai, Prof. Dr. Hartmut Göbel presented the modern European treatment options for migraines and headaches in three lectures. There was particularly great interest from Japanese headache experts and Japanese health policy makers in the concept of the Migraine and Headache Center at the Kiel Pain Clinic and in the nationwide headache treatment network. Although Japan is home to more than 130 million people, there are few specialized facilities to treat migraines and headaches. A year ago, a Japanese delegation traveled to Kiel to learn from the local concept and discuss possible implementation options for Japan. Now there was a desire for the initiation and implementation of a neurological-behavioral medicine pain clinic in Kiel to be presented to the Japanese specialist public in Tokyo as a model for headache centers in Japan.

In Japan and the Asian region, modern headache therapy is a health policy indicator for an effective health system that is geared towards the benefit of the population. It was therefore made an important future task to make appropriate, contemporary organizational and treatment concepts for migraine and headache therapy primarily available to the population. Great attention was paid to the experiences and implementation of a migraine and headache center in accordance with the concept of the Kiel Pain Clinic. It was agreed to form a formal partnership between the Kiel Pain Clinic and a migraine and headache center that was currently being established in Tokyo. This partnership is intended to facilitate the mutual exchange of ideas for optimizing modern pain therapy. There should also be an exchange of pain center employees. Common scientific concepts will enable improved future pain therapy. Special traditional Japanese therapeutic methods, such as acupuncture, will also be subjected to scientific analysis.

Japan has a very active and innovative headache society. An Asian headache master school is scheduled for March 2013. Leading headache centers in the world train Asian headache experts there to provide future improved care for migraine and headache patients. Europe is led by Prof. Dr. Göbel was represented by the Kiel Pain Clinic. The special nature of the Japanese way of life and infrastructure should be complemented by international concepts in migraine and headache treatment. The combination of international ideas should ultimately lead to an optimization of care for the population.

Below are some impressions from the 40th anniversary congress of the Japanese Headache Society in the photos.