Since the early days of neurosurgery the management of patients with intracranial hypertension has formed part of the day-to-day routine of the neurosurgeon. The introduction of modem techniques for the clinical monitoring of the intracranial pressure (ICP) meant a firmer basis for the diagnosis and treatment of these patients but it also started a new research boom in the pathophysiology of ICP, and its integration with the intracranial dynamics and metabolism of the brain. This development was clearly demonstrated at the first ICP symposium which was most successfully arranged in 1972 by...