A new book for migraine sufferers and their families

Searching on Amazon for books on migraines yields over 2,291 items. Do we need another book? Having just read the latest book on migraines, Understanding Your Migraines, the answer is a definite yes.

The book is written by two colleagues who for many years co-directed the Dartmouth Headache Clinic. Dr. Morris Levin is now the Director of the Headache Center and a Professor of Neurology at UCSF, while Dr. Thomas Ward is Professor of Neurology Emeritus at the Geiser School of Medicine at Dartmouth and the editor of the journal Headache. They are clearly highly qualified to write such a book, but qualifications are not enough – you need to be a good writer as well. And in fact, excellent writing style and case-based discussion are two of the major strengths of the book.

The book consists of 17 chapters, which cover diagnosis and our understanding of the underlying causes of this condition. What the readers will find most useful is the treatment approaches. Drs. Levin and Ward go into great detail about various non-drug options, including nutrition, exercise, meditation, acupressure, herbal products, vitamins and minerals. They also present pros and cons of various medications, nerve blocks and describe in detail the most effective and the safest preventive treatment for chronic migraines, Botox injections.

One chapter is devoted to specifics of migraines in pregnancy and another one to children and adolescents. The book also includes individual chapters on tension-type headaches, cluster and other less common headache types, and postconcussion headaches.

The authors also mention an exciting new treatment option, which we expect to be approved by the end of 2018. Four companies are racing to bring to the market CGRP monoclonal antibodies, which act like vaccines against migraines. A single injection will provide 1 to 3 months of relief with very few side effects. It is likely that this treatment will help about 60% of patients with both episodic and chronic migraines. Cluster headache patients might also benefit from these biologic drugs.

Reading so much information can make it difficult to understand how to actually use it and how to talk to your doctor about all these options. The authors successfully tackle this problem by providing many real-life cases and by including a chapter, How to Communicate with Your Medical Team.

I am sure that this book will help many migraine sufferers find relief. You can buy it on Amazon.