[In Context] Hemiplegic migraine and stroke in Mary Shelley

Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin Shelley (1797 –1851) was the author of Frankenstein; or, the Modern Prometheus. In 1839, she had recurrent, severe headaches whose severity, location, and duration were variable.1 These headaches were associated with dizziness; pain in the legs, right hand, and right eye; and episodes of transient partial paral ysis of the right leg and hand, with tremors, convulsive seizures, and severe pain on the top of the head.2 She was diagnosed with psychosomatic illness in 1842, “functional derangement in the nerves or brain” in 1845, and back pain and “neuralgia of the heart” in 1846.

Source: Lancet Neurology - March 14, 2018 Category: Neurology Authors: Philippe Charlier, Otto Appenzeller, Saudamini Deo, Antonio Perciaccante, Raffaella Bianucci Tags: In Context Source Type: research