Migraine in Childhood, edited by Judith M. Hockaday, MD, of the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford, England, is clearly written and clinically useful. The monograph is brief but complete, well organized, and logically presented. The tightness and clarity of the text completely make up for the lack of illustrative figures and the presence of only a few tables. The book reads well, and the work of all eight contributors is skillfully edited and well referenced. It is a welcome addition to the literature on migraine in children.
Dr Hockaday provides a clinically useful definition of migraine, stressing positive criteria, exclusion of other causes, and a mandatory follow-up period. Clinical features and variants are well discussed, with full consideration given to diagnostic limitations. However, the recommendations concerning neuroimaging are vague. The reader is warned not to delay diagnosis of brain tumors and to consider other intracranial and extracranial causes of headache.