Migraine is one of the oldest medical conditions known to mankind. Some of the earliest cases of painful headaches that we know about were recorded by the ancient Egyptians around 1200 BCE.
Around 400 BCE, Hippocrates described the visual disturbances, now known as an aura, that can precede a migraine attack, such as flashing lights or blurred vision. He also described that patients felt relief if they were able to vomit.
The credit for the discovery of migraine, though, was given to Aretaeus of Cappadocia who, during the second century CE, described the unilateral headaches typical of migraine attacks, as well as the associated vomiting and the periods between attacks where the patient is symptom-free.
The word migraine comes from the Latin word “hemicrania” meaning “half” (hemi) and “skull” (crania). Hemicrania was first used by Galenus of Pergamon to describe the one-sided pain felt by people undergoing an attack.
Galenus also suggested that the pain originated in the meninges and vasculature of the head, as well as suggested a connection between the stomach and the brain due to the vomiting that often comes with a migraine attack.
A popular Islamic philosopher, Avicenna, described migraine in his textbook on medicine entitled “El Qanoon fel teb;” he mentioned how eating, drinking, sounds, and light all worsened the head pain felt during a migraine attack and indicated how patients tended to rest alone in a dark room until the attack passed.
Abu Bakr Mohamed Ibn Zakariya Râzi pointed to an association between migraine and hormones when he mentioned how such intense attacks would often occur during menopause, after childbirth, or during the menstrual cycle.
Not all descriptions or suggestions were favorable for migraine patients. Andalusian-born physician Abulcasis, also known as Abu El Qasim, suggested that the one-sided headache could best be treated by applying hot irons to the head or garlic to the site through an incision in the temple.
The Middle Ages also offered several ineffective treatments for migraine including bloodletting and even witchcraft.
It wasn’t until the “Bibliotheca Anatomica, Medic, Chirurgica was published in London in 1712 that migraine was described along with other major headache types.
In the late 1930s, Graham and Wolff reported that an ergotamine tart (derived from the ergot fungus) could help abort migraine attacks. The tart provided relief by causing vasoconstriction of dilated blood vessels in the brain.
In 1950, Harold Wolff devised an experimental approach to exploring the brain, and he proposed from his research that blood vessel abnormalities were associated with migraine, something we know about today.
Today, we’re also learning about the complex role that neurotransmitters, peptides, hormones, and other molecules play in the cascade that leads to a migraine attack. Researchers are developing more targeted therapies based on our growing knowledge about human pathophysiology.
Citation:
Mandal, MD, Anaya. (2025). “Migraine History.” Retrieved from https://www.news-medical.net/health/Migraine-History.aspx.
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