CEREBRAL CIRCULATION

Abstract

Owing to the fact that ergotamine tartrate¹has been found to be one of the most effective substances in the treatment of the headache of migraine, a series of experimental studies has been undertaken with a view to obtaining more information concerning the mechanism by which relief is afforded. In this article we shall deal only with the experimental results found and a discussion of these observations with respect to the pain of migraine. For further discussion of ergotamine tartrate, we refer to related studies²which summarize its physiologic action and describe its therapeutic effects. The effect of ergotamine on the pial vessels was studied not only because of the paucity of information on the subject, but also because of the theory reviewed by Riley,³Robey⁴and others that vasospasm may be one of the important factors in the production of the symptoms of a migraine