Images of migraine history, past and present. Top: A positron emission tomography (PET) scan of the brain of a person experiencing a migraine attack. Color code: high brain activity (red, yellow); low activity (green, blue). At the lower left in green is an area of reduced blood flow and low brain activity during migraine. The pain of migraine does not come from the brain, but from membranes around it and from the scalp. Left: Claviceps prupurea growing on rye. Right: Detail of Matthias Grünewal's painting "The Temptation of St. Anthony", ca. 1512-1516. The saint's fingers, held over his head, show dark marks characteristic of ergot poisoning. |
