- Email: [email protected]
Motor DisordersDavid S Younger, Lippincott Williams, 1999, 576 pages, 219 illustrations, Hardback $129, ISBN: 0 316 97600 8
Neuromuscular Disorders 12 (2002) 80–81 www.elsevier.com/locate/nmd
Book reviews Merritt’s Neurology. Tenth Edition. Edited by Lewis Rowland, 2000, 1024 pages, £62, Lippincott Williams and Wilkins. ISBN 0 683 30474 7 This well-known book is now in its tenth edition. The editor and his co-authors deserve special credit for being able to confine a textbook of neurology to around 1000 pages and still maintain an excellent standard. Ninetyeight authors have contributed to the 165 chapters in the book. The chapters are divided into 25 sections. Many of the authors are acknowledged international experts in their field. Chapters are presented in easily readable formats and with generous illustrations. Appropriate tables for quick reference have been provided throughout. Section I deals with neurological symptoms and starts off with two very good chapters on higher functions that effectively set the pace for the rest of the book. In the same section the chapter on impaired vision deserves special mention for its masterful coverage. Section II, on diagnostic tests, does well to combine discussion on the more conventional investigations with recent advances, for example, in neuroimaging and genetics. Section III, ‘Infections of the Nervous System’, has a new and timely chapter on prion diseases. Section VI, ‘Tumors’ has been adequately dealt with and the section is very well illustrated. Other major areas including vascular diseases, multiple sclerosis, trauma, ataxias, dementias, mitochondrial disorders, developmental disorders, genetic diseases of the central nervous system, myopathies, neuromuscular junction disorders and epilepsy have been well covered. Section XV, ‘Movement Disorders’, was a treat to read. Every chapter in this section has been excellently written but special mention should be made of the chapters on Parkinsonism and on Dystonia. A separate section to discuss ethical and legal issues in neurology highlights their importance in modern day practice. In contrast, Section XII, ‘Peripheral Neuropathies’, is much too concise. Chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy surely deserved more than two paragraphs. The reason for keeping this section so far removed from those dealing with muscle and neuromuscular junction disorders was also not clear. Was there anything I missed? I could not find any reference to medication misuse headache. The figure depicting the action of anti-migraine drugs is slightly outdated and does not include triptans. Another treatable disorder, Hashimoto encephalopathy needed more than the fleeting reference to it in the chapter for ‘Endocrine Diseases’. An
inadvertent typographical error in Chapter 140, ‘Epilepsy’, makes status epilepticus look like a ‘Reproductive Health Issue’. The rightful place for the latter heading is, of course, in page 826. All said and done, this remains a very good textbook, packed with useful information that can be easily retrieved. Medical students, house-officers, non-neurologists and trainee neurologists stand to gain a lot from it. I would strongly recommend it for them. Busy clinical neurologists will also find it useful for quick reference, especially to some of its tables. I know I have. A. Ghosh Department of Neurology, Greater Manchester Neurosciences Centre, Hope Hospital, Salford M6 8HD, UK PII: S0 960-8966(01 )00 255-3
Motor Disorders David S Younger, Lippincott Williams, 1999, 576 pages, 219 illustrations, Hardback $129, ISBN: 0 316 97600 8 When I was asked to review a book with the title ‘Motor Disorders’ three questions came to mind; Where would it start? Where would it finish? And what would distinguish it from a general neurological text. After all few neurological disorders spare the motor system. The admirable thing about this book is that it has clear answers to all these questions. There are three main sections to the book. The first details methods used in the investigation of a patient with a motor disorder. Included are sections on history taking and examination with particular reference to motor disorders as well as chapters on electrophysiology and nerve and muscle pathology. The main bulk of the book is then used to describe the diseases which affect the motor system with the editor choosing to divide them into ‘nerve and muscle diseases’, ‘spinal cord diseases’ and ‘the neuronal degenerations’. A third and fairly considerable section is on neuro rehabilitation in relation to motor disorders. The latter includes particularly good sections on Respiratory muscle aids, Evaluation and management of swallowing and voice difficulty and Orthoses and adaptation equipment. The emphasis in all sections is very clearly on neuromuscular disorders with both peripheral nerve and muscle diseases being covered in depth. The section describing
0960-8966/02/$ - see front matter q 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
Book reviews
individual diseases concentrates very heavily on neuromuscular disorders but also includes in depth chapters on ALS (MND), Syringomyelia, Cervical Myelopathy and the Hereditary ataxias and parapareses. Conditions such as MS and Parkinsonian syndromes are covered briefly but mainly to pull them into the periphery of the broader picture of motor disorders. The rehabilitation section again concentrates on neuromuscular disorders. Commendable is that despite this being a multi author text the editors desire to approach matters from a perspective of motor disorders in general is evident. There is little be to disgruntled about with there being an adequate amount of appropriately chosen illustrations. This is not a general neurology book but is clearly targeted at physicians or workers with an interest in neuromuscular disorders. The approach has been to expand a comprehensive text of neuromuscular disorders into the broader field of ‘motor disorders’ and this works well, making interesting reading.
M. Busby Bradford Hospital NHS Trust, St. Luke’s Hospital, Bradford, BD5 0NA, UK PII: S 0960-896 6(01)00256-5
Coping with a Myositis Disease. James R. Kilpatrick (Editor and Publisher). Kilpatrick Publishing Company, 2000. 158 pp. Price £12.00 approx., ISBN 0970167105 Intended primarily to offer advice to patients suffering from a myositis disease and their care givers, this book is a must for the reception areas of neuromuscular and rheumatology clinics. The foreword, written by a neurologist, Dr Aziz Shaibani, Director, Nerve & Muscle Center of Texas, sums up the content admirably. That “...medical textbooks talk about medical disorders and medical cases, and not about the complex interaction between the medical disorders and the specific individual’s psychology to produce what we call patients. The book does not only talk about patients but is also written and edited by patients, thus
81
providing a unique contribution to the medical and public library alike.” The content comprises 58 case reports covering patients who have dermatomyositis, polymyositis or inclusion body myositis. The group is a self-selected sample of patients recounting their personal experiences in coping with their disease. Statistically, it could be argued that the sample is too small to arrive at conclusions. However, there is a constant thread throughout, both in respect of attitudes and tips for coping with their disorders, and experiences relating to the relevance of early diagnosis to achieve effective treatment where this is available. A patient who has developed myositis can feel isolated and depressed. Generally, having experienced an active and healthy existence, it comes as a shock that their lifestyle is undergoing or about to undergo considerable restrictions. The question may arise “why me?”, and especially, if diagnosis has been protracted for whatever reason. This book demonstrates that things may not be as bad as perceived; there are useful tips to ease the burden and it lists organizations that can offer practical advice and help. Many of the patients did not receive a definitive diagnosis for several years. In some instances, this was due to their not presenting themselves until the symptoms became more pronounced. In others, delay in diagnosis appeared due to lack of referral to a neurologist specializing in muscular disorders. Perhaps in the future, primary care physicians and others will become more aware of these conditions and act accordingly. Quite a large number of dermatomyositis and polymyositis patients experienced severe sideeffects from medication, particularly Prednisone, resulting in drastic reduction of dosage or even abandonment of treatment by the patient. It is quite striking that a large number of the patients held strong religious beliefs that helped them through their crises. However, there was a general acknowledgement that the treatment and care of these disorders are very much a ‘partnership’ between patient and neurologist.
Raymond Brigden Reading, UK Email address: [email protected]
PII: S0960 -8 966(01)00257 -7
Book reviews Merritt’s Neurology. Tenth Edition. Edited by Lewis Rowland, 2000, 1024 pages, £62, Lippincott Williams and Wilkins. ISBN 0 683 30474 7 This well-known book is now in its tenth edition. The editor and his co-authors deserve special credit for being able to confine a textbook of neurology to around 1000 pages and still maintain an excellent standard. Ninetyeight authors have contributed to the 165 chapters in the book. The chapters are divided into 25 sections. Many of the authors are acknowledged international experts in their field. Chapters are presented in easily readable formats and with generous illustrations. Appropriate tables for quick reference have been provided throughout. Section I deals with neurological symptoms and starts off with two very good chapters on higher functions that effectively set the pace for the rest of the book. In the same section the chapter on impaired vision deserves special mention for its masterful coverage. Section II, on diagnostic tests, does well to combine discussion on the more conventional investigations with recent advances, for example, in neuroimaging and genetics. Section III, ‘Infections of the Nervous System’, has a new and timely chapter on prion diseases. Section VI, ‘Tumors’ has been adequately dealt with and the section is very well illustrated. Other major areas including vascular diseases, multiple sclerosis, trauma, ataxias, dementias, mitochondrial disorders, developmental disorders, genetic diseases of the central nervous system, myopathies, neuromuscular junction disorders and epilepsy have been well covered. Section XV, ‘Movement Disorders’, was a treat to read. Every chapter in this section has been excellently written but special mention should be made of the chapters on Parkinsonism and on Dystonia. A separate section to discuss ethical and legal issues in neurology highlights their importance in modern day practice. In contrast, Section XII, ‘Peripheral Neuropathies’, is much too concise. Chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy surely deserved more than two paragraphs. The reason for keeping this section so far removed from those dealing with muscle and neuromuscular junction disorders was also not clear. Was there anything I missed? I could not find any reference to medication misuse headache. The figure depicting the action of anti-migraine drugs is slightly outdated and does not include triptans. Another treatable disorder, Hashimoto encephalopathy needed more than the fleeting reference to it in the chapter for ‘Endocrine Diseases’. An
inadvertent typographical error in Chapter 140, ‘Epilepsy’, makes status epilepticus look like a ‘Reproductive Health Issue’. The rightful place for the latter heading is, of course, in page 826. All said and done, this remains a very good textbook, packed with useful information that can be easily retrieved. Medical students, house-officers, non-neurologists and trainee neurologists stand to gain a lot from it. I would strongly recommend it for them. Busy clinical neurologists will also find it useful for quick reference, especially to some of its tables. I know I have. A. Ghosh Department of Neurology, Greater Manchester Neurosciences Centre, Hope Hospital, Salford M6 8HD, UK PII: S0 960-8966(01 )00 255-3
Motor Disorders David S Younger, Lippincott Williams, 1999, 576 pages, 219 illustrations, Hardback $129, ISBN: 0 316 97600 8 When I was asked to review a book with the title ‘Motor Disorders’ three questions came to mind; Where would it start? Where would it finish? And what would distinguish it from a general neurological text. After all few neurological disorders spare the motor system. The admirable thing about this book is that it has clear answers to all these questions. There are three main sections to the book. The first details methods used in the investigation of a patient with a motor disorder. Included are sections on history taking and examination with particular reference to motor disorders as well as chapters on electrophysiology and nerve and muscle pathology. The main bulk of the book is then used to describe the diseases which affect the motor system with the editor choosing to divide them into ‘nerve and muscle diseases’, ‘spinal cord diseases’ and ‘the neuronal degenerations’. A third and fairly considerable section is on neuro rehabilitation in relation to motor disorders. The latter includes particularly good sections on Respiratory muscle aids, Evaluation and management of swallowing and voice difficulty and Orthoses and adaptation equipment. The emphasis in all sections is very clearly on neuromuscular disorders with both peripheral nerve and muscle diseases being covered in depth. The section describing
0960-8966/02/$ - see front matter q 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
Book reviews
individual diseases concentrates very heavily on neuromuscular disorders but also includes in depth chapters on ALS (MND), Syringomyelia, Cervical Myelopathy and the Hereditary ataxias and parapareses. Conditions such as MS and Parkinsonian syndromes are covered briefly but mainly to pull them into the periphery of the broader picture of motor disorders. The rehabilitation section again concentrates on neuromuscular disorders. Commendable is that despite this being a multi author text the editors desire to approach matters from a perspective of motor disorders in general is evident. There is little be to disgruntled about with there being an adequate amount of appropriately chosen illustrations. This is not a general neurology book but is clearly targeted at physicians or workers with an interest in neuromuscular disorders. The approach has been to expand a comprehensive text of neuromuscular disorders into the broader field of ‘motor disorders’ and this works well, making interesting reading.
M. Busby Bradford Hospital NHS Trust, St. Luke’s Hospital, Bradford, BD5 0NA, UK PII: S 0960-896 6(01)00256-5
Coping with a Myositis Disease. James R. Kilpatrick (Editor and Publisher). Kilpatrick Publishing Company, 2000. 158 pp. Price £12.00 approx., ISBN 0970167105 Intended primarily to offer advice to patients suffering from a myositis disease and their care givers, this book is a must for the reception areas of neuromuscular and rheumatology clinics. The foreword, written by a neurologist, Dr Aziz Shaibani, Director, Nerve & Muscle Center of Texas, sums up the content admirably. That “...medical textbooks talk about medical disorders and medical cases, and not about the complex interaction between the medical disorders and the specific individual’s psychology to produce what we call patients. The book does not only talk about patients but is also written and edited by patients, thus
81
providing a unique contribution to the medical and public library alike.” The content comprises 58 case reports covering patients who have dermatomyositis, polymyositis or inclusion body myositis. The group is a self-selected sample of patients recounting their personal experiences in coping with their disease. Statistically, it could be argued that the sample is too small to arrive at conclusions. However, there is a constant thread throughout, both in respect of attitudes and tips for coping with their disorders, and experiences relating to the relevance of early diagnosis to achieve effective treatment where this is available. A patient who has developed myositis can feel isolated and depressed. Generally, having experienced an active and healthy existence, it comes as a shock that their lifestyle is undergoing or about to undergo considerable restrictions. The question may arise “why me?”, and especially, if diagnosis has been protracted for whatever reason. This book demonstrates that things may not be as bad as perceived; there are useful tips to ease the burden and it lists organizations that can offer practical advice and help. Many of the patients did not receive a definitive diagnosis for several years. In some instances, this was due to their not presenting themselves until the symptoms became more pronounced. In others, delay in diagnosis appeared due to lack of referral to a neurologist specializing in muscular disorders. Perhaps in the future, primary care physicians and others will become more aware of these conditions and act accordingly. Quite a large number of dermatomyositis and polymyositis patients experienced severe sideeffects from medication, particularly Prednisone, resulting in drastic reduction of dosage or even abandonment of treatment by the patient. It is quite striking that a large number of the patients held strong religious beliefs that helped them through their crises. However, there was a general acknowledgement that the treatment and care of these disorders are very much a ‘partnership’ between patient and neurologist.
Raymond Brigden Reading, UK Email address: [email protected]
PII: S0960 -8 966(01)00257 -7