Differential Diagnosis in Neurology and Neurosurgery

Abstract

This single-authored handbook on neurological and neurosurgical differential diagnosis is aimed at students, house staff, and general physicians. Tables are presented hierarchically starting with the most common elements of the differential diagnosis process by symptom complex. The book is divided into 15 chapters, encompassing epidemiology, neuroradiology, neuropediatrics, cranial nerve disorders, neuro-ophthalmology, intracranial tumors, demyelination and brain atrophy, cerebrovascular disease, spinal disorders, peripheral nerve disorders, movement disorders, neurotrauma, neuroinfectology, pain, and neurorehabilitation. Some of the chapters reflect a stronger neurosurgical than neurological background. The chapter on neuroepidemiology is based mostly on information from research in the United States rather than from other sources such as the World Health Organization. The chapter on neurorehabilitation lists and briefly describes common neurological and neurosurgical scales, indexes, and scoring systems rather than differential diagnoses, which to my surprise includes the Mini-Mental State Examination. Some of the references, terminology, and jargon are outdated. For example, some terms, such as histiocytosis X and its old variants, have officially been supplanted since the mid 1980s by Langerhan cell histiocytosis. The author omits Wernicke encephalopathy from the “Causes of Confusion and Restlessness” as well as the “Causes of Coma” chapters. The quality of the neuroimages is poor although they convey the intended message. The author does provide the differential diagnoses for many common and some not so common diagnoses; however, it is a stretch to say that this book leaves no stone unturned. The approach attempts to be comprehensive, simple, and accessible. It meets its purpose to provide assistance with the differential diagnosis but not to be used on its own. It is a starting point for neurosurgical and neurological differential diagnosing. Its intended audience will find this book practical and useful.