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Dynamic neuroscience
Electroencephalography and Clinical Neurophysiology, 1 9 7 6 , 4 1 : 1 0 7 - - 1 1 2 © Elsevier Scientific P u b l i s h i n g C o m p a n y , A m s t e r d a m - - P r i n t e d in T h e N e t h e r l a n d s
107
BOOK REVIEWS
edited by H. PETSCHE and JOHN R. HUGHES
Dynamic neuroscience. - - G.O. Watts. (Harper
and R o w , New York, 1975, 453 p., $17.95, softcover). This is a strange book. It seems to be a t e x t b o o k attempting to integrate biochemical and neuroanatomical information influenced by cybernetics and c o m p u t e r principles. Since the author is a lecturer in n e u r o a n a t o m y at a medical school, the presumption is that it was written for medical students. The course it would be used in is neuriatry, a neologism meaning "the medical treatment of diseased neurons". The author tells us that a neurologist does clinical research into the CNS and "biological psychiatry evolves into neuriatry of the limbic system". The author often uses c o m p u t e r rather than neurophysiologic terminology, and redefines words and phrases making the b o o k difficult to read. F o r example, he changes schizophrenia to malphrenia, defined as a sick brain with "a connotation of violence". ECT is "electrochemical t h e r a p y " , and in a brief paragraph describing associated physiological changes, Watts notes that "electrical stimulation of sexual pleasure centers may be one of the most beneficial effects o f ECT". A reader expecting a b o o k dealing with neuroscience as it is c o m m o n l y understood will find the organization of this b o o k somewhat unusual. While the author has divided the CNS into six parts consisting of sensory, motor, control areas, input and o u t p u t units, and m e m o r y storage areas, within chapters, topics often follow with no logical pattern discernible to this reviewer. Paragraphs, sentences, ideas, are juxtaposed in an often startling manner. For example, most of the section on premature ejaculation deals with
sexual problems of women. In the chapter entitled "The Nerve Cell", there is a section on chemical control b y diet in which Watts writes that whenever "table salt is added to the cooking, or after, there is t o o much salt". Similar fad-like information is provided in the chapter entitled "Chemistry o f . t h e Central Nervous System". Here we learn that anyone " w h o fails to eat breakfast is a candidate for peptic ulcer and probably has recurrent hypoglycemia". The reader might expect such statements to be supported by research evidence. However, the only attributed data in the b o o k are figures taken from other publications. Even when the author refers to other people's work by name, there is no citation. Nevertheless, each of the 24 chapters in the b o o k ends with a list of suggested readings. Some of these lists are quite extensive covering 2 or 3 pages. Despite this, they are often surprising both in what is omitted as well as what is listed. A b o u t half the chapter entitled "Electrodiagnosis and T r e a t m e n t " deals with the EEG, b u t there are no references to EEG literature describing basic technique. More than half of the suggested readings at the end of this chapter relate to brain stimulation, depth recording and neurosurgical studies while the remaining articles involve biochemistry, pharmacology and pathology. The dynamic aspect of the author's approach is not immediately apparent. Possibly, his efforts to reduce neuropsychiatric material to biochemical and limbic processes are what he means b y the use of this term. Or, perhaps the figures in the b o o k are intended to convey a feeling of dynamism. Almost invariably they contain circles and elipses connected with many straight and curving arrows. Most of
108
BOOK REVIEWS
these figures are referred to "en passant" in the text. The author's basic notion seem to be that neuroscience must be based on biochemistry and neuroanatomy, especially the limbic system. Writing about such material, he can be precise and to the point. But he can also be trivial, over-simplified and inaccurate. When he attempts to deal with pathology and especially psychopathology, the strange, the confused, and the incorrect appear, as does his view of neurosurgery as a panacea for neurological and psychiatric disabilities. VICTOR MILSTEIN Larue D. Carter Memorial Hospital, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, Ind. 46202 (U.S.A.}
Seizures, epilepsy, and your child. A handbook for parents, teachers, and epileptics o f all ages. -- J.C. Lagos. (Harper and Row, New York, 1974, 239 p., $7.95). The author's intent to provide written and authoritative answers to questions which are frequently asked of him as a pediatric neurologist and which might be asked of any physician caring for patients with seizures is well fulfilled. Each question is posed, and the answer follows directly. A question may be rephrased more specifically, again to be answered, but in greater detail, or a related question posed and answered. The style is conversational and very easy to read. The questions are grouped by topics and include basic information about epilepsy, its diagnosis and treatment, prognosis, inheritance, and relationship with other conditions, including mental retardation and hyperactive behavior, and there is very practical advice for rearing an epileptic child in meeting and preventing the many psychological and behavioral problems that may arise in school and society. The views expressed do not differ substantially from those held by most university-affiliated neurologists and pediatric neu-
rologists in the U.S.A. On topics where there is considerable divergence of opinion, such as the long-term use of phenobarbital in prevention of seizures or the duration of drug therapy after seizure control has been achieved, the author always leaves room open to accept other opinions, and treatment based on evaluation of the specific features of each case by the treating physician is repeatedly emphasized. The discussion of electroencephalography in diagnosis is brief but adequate to the purpose. Radioisotope brain scans and contrast radiography are mentioned appropriately. Computerized axial tomography is not included, and there is no mention of carbamazepine or clonazepam among the anticonvutsant drugs. These omissions do not " d a t e " the volume in any practical sense, as the discussion covers basic principles of diagnosis and medical therapy. The latter is well exemplified in detailed and very pertinent information regarding the use of phenobarbital and diphenylhydantoin. Use of traditional and familiar classification of seizures seems justified for the purposes and intended readers, but regrettably for the sake of wider standardization of nomenclature the opportunity was not taken to identify seizures as well, according to the terminology of the International Classification ("Epilepsia (Amst.)", 1970, 11: 102). Besides the intended readers, the book may be useful to pediatricians and primary care physicians both as a series of well-organized, clear statements by an experienced specialist and in anticipation of questions and for points of departure for discussions in specific cases. GREGORY S. FERRISS Louisiana State University, New Orleans, La. 70112 (U.S.A.)
Advances in neurology. Vol. 10. Primate models o f neurological disorders. -- B.S.
107
BOOK REVIEWS
edited by H. PETSCHE and JOHN R. HUGHES
Dynamic neuroscience. - - G.O. Watts. (Harper
and R o w , New York, 1975, 453 p., $17.95, softcover). This is a strange book. It seems to be a t e x t b o o k attempting to integrate biochemical and neuroanatomical information influenced by cybernetics and c o m p u t e r principles. Since the author is a lecturer in n e u r o a n a t o m y at a medical school, the presumption is that it was written for medical students. The course it would be used in is neuriatry, a neologism meaning "the medical treatment of diseased neurons". The author tells us that a neurologist does clinical research into the CNS and "biological psychiatry evolves into neuriatry of the limbic system". The author often uses c o m p u t e r rather than neurophysiologic terminology, and redefines words and phrases making the b o o k difficult to read. F o r example, he changes schizophrenia to malphrenia, defined as a sick brain with "a connotation of violence". ECT is "electrochemical t h e r a p y " , and in a brief paragraph describing associated physiological changes, Watts notes that "electrical stimulation of sexual pleasure centers may be one of the most beneficial effects o f ECT". A reader expecting a b o o k dealing with neuroscience as it is c o m m o n l y understood will find the organization of this b o o k somewhat unusual. While the author has divided the CNS into six parts consisting of sensory, motor, control areas, input and o u t p u t units, and m e m o r y storage areas, within chapters, topics often follow with no logical pattern discernible to this reviewer. Paragraphs, sentences, ideas, are juxtaposed in an often startling manner. For example, most of the section on premature ejaculation deals with
sexual problems of women. In the chapter entitled "The Nerve Cell", there is a section on chemical control b y diet in which Watts writes that whenever "table salt is added to the cooking, or after, there is t o o much salt". Similar fad-like information is provided in the chapter entitled "Chemistry o f . t h e Central Nervous System". Here we learn that anyone " w h o fails to eat breakfast is a candidate for peptic ulcer and probably has recurrent hypoglycemia". The reader might expect such statements to be supported by research evidence. However, the only attributed data in the b o o k are figures taken from other publications. Even when the author refers to other people's work by name, there is no citation. Nevertheless, each of the 24 chapters in the b o o k ends with a list of suggested readings. Some of these lists are quite extensive covering 2 or 3 pages. Despite this, they are often surprising both in what is omitted as well as what is listed. A b o u t half the chapter entitled "Electrodiagnosis and T r e a t m e n t " deals with the EEG, b u t there are no references to EEG literature describing basic technique. More than half of the suggested readings at the end of this chapter relate to brain stimulation, depth recording and neurosurgical studies while the remaining articles involve biochemistry, pharmacology and pathology. The dynamic aspect of the author's approach is not immediately apparent. Possibly, his efforts to reduce neuropsychiatric material to biochemical and limbic processes are what he means b y the use of this term. Or, perhaps the figures in the b o o k are intended to convey a feeling of dynamism. Almost invariably they contain circles and elipses connected with many straight and curving arrows. Most of
108
BOOK REVIEWS
these figures are referred to "en passant" in the text. The author's basic notion seem to be that neuroscience must be based on biochemistry and neuroanatomy, especially the limbic system. Writing about such material, he can be precise and to the point. But he can also be trivial, over-simplified and inaccurate. When he attempts to deal with pathology and especially psychopathology, the strange, the confused, and the incorrect appear, as does his view of neurosurgery as a panacea for neurological and psychiatric disabilities. VICTOR MILSTEIN Larue D. Carter Memorial Hospital, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, Ind. 46202 (U.S.A.}
Seizures, epilepsy, and your child. A handbook for parents, teachers, and epileptics o f all ages. -- J.C. Lagos. (Harper and Row, New York, 1974, 239 p., $7.95). The author's intent to provide written and authoritative answers to questions which are frequently asked of him as a pediatric neurologist and which might be asked of any physician caring for patients with seizures is well fulfilled. Each question is posed, and the answer follows directly. A question may be rephrased more specifically, again to be answered, but in greater detail, or a related question posed and answered. The style is conversational and very easy to read. The questions are grouped by topics and include basic information about epilepsy, its diagnosis and treatment, prognosis, inheritance, and relationship with other conditions, including mental retardation and hyperactive behavior, and there is very practical advice for rearing an epileptic child in meeting and preventing the many psychological and behavioral problems that may arise in school and society. The views expressed do not differ substantially from those held by most university-affiliated neurologists and pediatric neu-
rologists in the U.S.A. On topics where there is considerable divergence of opinion, such as the long-term use of phenobarbital in prevention of seizures or the duration of drug therapy after seizure control has been achieved, the author always leaves room open to accept other opinions, and treatment based on evaluation of the specific features of each case by the treating physician is repeatedly emphasized. The discussion of electroencephalography in diagnosis is brief but adequate to the purpose. Radioisotope brain scans and contrast radiography are mentioned appropriately. Computerized axial tomography is not included, and there is no mention of carbamazepine or clonazepam among the anticonvutsant drugs. These omissions do not " d a t e " the volume in any practical sense, as the discussion covers basic principles of diagnosis and medical therapy. The latter is well exemplified in detailed and very pertinent information regarding the use of phenobarbital and diphenylhydantoin. Use of traditional and familiar classification of seizures seems justified for the purposes and intended readers, but regrettably for the sake of wider standardization of nomenclature the opportunity was not taken to identify seizures as well, according to the terminology of the International Classification ("Epilepsia (Amst.)", 1970, 11: 102). Besides the intended readers, the book may be useful to pediatricians and primary care physicians both as a series of well-organized, clear statements by an experienced specialist and in anticipation of questions and for points of departure for discussions in specific cases. GREGORY S. FERRISS Louisiana State University, New Orleans, La. 70112 (U.S.A.)
Advances in neurology. Vol. 10. Primate models o f neurological disorders. -- B.S.