Prodromata and subjective visual sensations: William Gowers on migraine and epilepsy, 1885-1910

William Richard Gowers (1845-1915) was a pioneer of British neurology [1]. He is credited with the first (or best) descriptions of numerous neurological disorders, including dystrophia myotonica, myasthenia gravis, ataxic paraplegia, vasovagal attacks, musicogenic epilepsy, sleep paralysis, palatal myoclonus, and many others. His “chief monument” (according to Gordon Holmes) was the Manual of Diseases of the Nervous System (1886, 1888; 2nd edition 1892, 1893; 3rd edition 1899 (volume I only)). In this essay, I discuss Gowers’ writings on migraine, specifically focussing on the subjective visual phenomena of migraine (aura), and his views on the link between migraine and epilepsy.