Handbook of clinical neurology
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The chapter starts from the Renaissance (although the origins of Italian neurology can be traced back to the Middle Ages), when treatises of nervous system physiopathology still followed Hippocratic and Galenic "humoral" theories. In Italy, as elsewhere in Europe, the concepts of humoral pathology were abandoned in the 18th century, when neurology was influenced by novel trends. Neurology acquired the status of clinical discipline (as "clinic of mental diseases") after national reunification (declared in 1861 but completed much later). ⋯ In the first half of the 20th century, the history of Italian neurology was dominated by World Wars I and II (which stimulated studies on the wounded) and the fascist regime in-between the Wars (when the flow of information was instead very limited). Italy became a republic in 1946, and modern neurology and its distinction from psychiatry were finally promoted. The chapter also provides detailed accounts of scientific societies and journals dedicated to the neurological sciences in Italy.
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Review Historical Article
Chapter 39: an historical overview of British neurology.
In the UK, neurology stemmed from general (internal) medicine rather than psychiatry. In 1886 the Neurological Society of London was founded, with Hughlings Jackson as its first President. After World War I, Kinnier Wilson was made Physician in Charge of the first independent department of neurology, which was at Westminster Hospital in London. ⋯ Before Willis the brain was a mystery, but his work laid the foundations for neurological advances. After the 17th century of William Harvey and Thomas Sydenham and the 18th century of William Heberden and Robert Whytt there followed the 19th century of James Parkinson (1755-1824), John Cooke (1756-1838), Sir Charles Bell (1774-1842), Marshall Hall (1790-1856) and Bentley Todd (1809-1860). Besides its "Father," Hughlings Jackson, the giants who established the unique superiority of British neurology were Sir William Gowers, Sir David Ferrier, Kinnier Wilson, Sir Gordon Holmes and Sir Charles Sherrington.
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Vestibular migraine is a chameleon among the episodic vertigo syndromes because considerable variation characterizes its clinical manifestation. The attacks may last from seconds to days. About one-third of patients presents with monosymptomatic attacks of vertigo or dizziness without headache or other migrainous symptoms. ⋯ We prefer the term "vestibular migraine" to "migrainous vertigo," because the latter may also refer to various vestibular and non-vestibular symptoms. Antimigrainous medication to treat the single attack and to prevent recurring attacks appears to be effective, but the published evidence is weak. A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study is required to evaluate medical treatment of this condition.
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Activity-related headaches can be brought on by Valsalva maneuvers ("cough headache"), prolonged exercise ("exertional headache"), and sexual excitation ("orgasmic headache"). These headaches account for 1-2% of the consultations due to headache in a general neurological department. These entities are a challenging diagnostic problem as they can be primary or secondary and as their etiologies differ depending on the headache type. ⋯ The mean age at onset for primary headaches provoked by physical exercise and sexual activity is similar (40 years); they share clinical characteristics (bilateral, pulsating) and respond to beta-blockers. In conclusion, provoked headaches account for a low proportion of headache consultations. Cough headache is a different condition when compared to headache due to physical exercise and sexual activity, which are clinical variants of the same entity.