Headache: Through the Centuries

Headache: Through the Centuries illuminates the history of headaches with a particular interest in how the disorder has been understood and treated since the earliest recorded accounts, dating from around 4000 BC. Different types of headache were being recognized as early as the 2nd century AD. Over the years, though, the classification of types of headache has changed so that headache patterns described in the past are often difficult to relate to present-day types of headache. Since that time, a great deal of material on the topic has become available, the full gamut of manifestations of the disorder has been described, and considerable insight into its mechanisms has been obtained, though no completely satisfactory explanation of the disorder has yet become available. Providing an extensive history and the development of our understanding of headache over the course of six millennia, Headache: Through the Centuries is thought-provoking and relevant reading for neurologists, medical historians, and anyone interested in headaches.