FEBRUARY 2019 ISSUE - Digital Edition

ook review
THE IMPORTANCE OF
BEING INFORMED
NAVIGATING LIFE
WITH MIGRAINE AND
OTHER HEADACHES
William B Young, MD,
FAAN, FANA, FAHS and
Stephen D Silberstein,
MD, FAHS, FAAN, FACP
pp241
Oxford University Press
Managing a neurologic disorder is
new territory. To effectively manage
a neurologic condition, the person
should be armed with new information and
new skill sets. Informed involvement of the
patient in the treatment programme can
lead to better care and better outcomes.
But one cannot escape the question of how
such information could help in curing the
condition.
Presenting their book, Navigating Life
with Migraine and Other Headaches, authors
William B. Young and Stephen D. Silberstein
seek to address this question, underscoring
the importance of being informed about your
condition.
Headache is one of the most common
complaints patients consult neurologists for.
It is the seventh most common symptom
for which they visit primary care providers.
Headache is such a common symptom
that it often goes overlooked, undertreated,
overtreated or untreated. Many people think
that “nothing can be really done”. While
many others, including some doctors, seem
to cherish certain notions: For example,
without aura, tingling, numbness and blurred
vision, a headache cannot truly be called
migraine. But it remains a fact that most of
the people suffering from migraine do not
experience aura or any of these symptoms.
You can avail the best new treatments
if you land up with the right expert. The
key requisite is that you should be armed
with the right kind of information about the
condition.
Spread across three sections, the book
explains migraine and other headaches
in simple terms. All the known forms of
migraine, migraine equivalents, their triggers,
symptoms, patterns as well as the hormonal
aspects of the condition are discussed at
length. Then it goes on with various drugs
as well as other alternative and behavioural
treatments for migraine. The authors point
out that migraine can occur at any age. Even
very young children are suspected of having
migraine, but it is difficult to diagnose it until
they learn to speak.
Sinus headaches and headaches related
to disorders of the neck, post-trauma,
trigeminal neuralgia etc are classified under
Secondary Headaches and Neuralgia section.
THE MORE PRECISELY YOU PIN
DOWN AND COMMUNICATE
YOUR PROBLEM, THE MORE
LIKELY YOU WALK OUT OF
YOUR DOCTOR’S OFFICE WITH
A PLAN RIGHT FOR YOU
While listing some of the headaches that
require urgent medical attention, the book
also mentions some of the unusual type of
headaches such as ice pick headaches and
sexual activity headache.
The book provides up-to-date and useful
answers to the questions that concern most
to the patients and caregivers, illustrated
with real-life experiences of patients and
families.
Physician’s decision is not “a one
shoe fits all” enterprise. The more precisely
you pin down and communicate your
problem, the more likely you walk out of your
doctor’s office with a plan right for you, says
the book.
FEBRUARY 2019 / FUTURE MEDICINE / 97