Management of the Patient with Headache.

Abstract

Headache is a common and sometimes unrewarding problem, and a fresh thoughtful analysis is welcome. The authors have tried to clarify and bring sharp lines of distinction between the various types of headache. The six chapters discuss organic mechanisms, psychological mechanisms, vascular mechanisms of head pain, headaches as a symptom of systemic disease, differential diagnosis and treatment, and diagnostic techniques. An endeavor to simplify always risks drawing lines more clearly than the facts justify; but the authors have achieved their aim, and this volume would form a sound foundation upon which further observations and intelligent experience could build. The scope and approach is both wide and wise. This is praiseworthy but not unexpected, for this monograph comes from three departments: internal medicine, neurology, and psychiatry. Unfortunately, the triple authorship is also reflected by some confusion of discussion. One hundred twenty-eight pages preclude a study in depth as well as breadth,