Brain, Vol. 123, No. 7, 1528,
July 2000
© 2000 Oxford University Press
Book reviews |
MOVEMENT DISORDERS IN CLINICAL PRACTICE.
.
City Hospital NHS Trust, Dudley Road, Birmingham, UK
As pointed out in the Forward and Introduction to this book, the diagnosis of movement disorders remains phenomenological, based on the appearance of the involuntary movements. Accurate diagnosis therefore depends on experience in the field: if you haven't seen it, you won't diagnose it! This has lead to the extensive use of video presentations at movement disorders congresses and contributed to the popularity of the video supplement to the journal Movement Disorders. It is only logical that technological development took us in the direction of CD-ROM supplements to movement disorders textbooks, as in the present publication.
The inclusion in most chapters of brief CD-ROM clips of both common and uncommon movement disorders gives this publication a significant edge over even lengthier textbooks on the subject, particularly in terms of the teaching of juniors. The text is succinct but thorough, and is aimed at trainee neurologists and perhaps other trainee physicians. It will also be a useful source of reference for all of the neurosciences specialties.
The initial chapter on idiopathic Parkinson's disease provides a complete review of all aspects of the condition, except for surgery, which has been given its own chapter. A detailed examination of Parkinson's Plus Syndromes follows. The book is full of useful practical tips that movement disorders specialists usually pick up over years of clinical practice, and the chapter on tremor is particularly good in this regard. The contribution on dystonia strikes the right balance between clinical and therapeutic considerations versus pathophysiology. Other hyperkinetic disorders such as chorea, tic disorders and myoclonus are well described with representative CD-ROM clips. It is reassuring to know that I am not the only movement disorders specialist who whiles away the long hours in airport lounges spotting patients with the likes of Gilles de la Tourette Syndrome! The importance of drug-induced movement disorders and those occurring during sleep is recognized by separate chapters devoted to each. The contribution on paediatric movement disorders will be of considerable value to those training in paediatric neurology.
The CD-ROM runs directly from a computer CD-ROM drive, once it has been hacked from the rather unyielding plastic casing within the back cover of the book. The instruction to run the CD-ROM from `Isis.exe' was incorrect on my disc, although it did run from `Movement Disorder.exe'. The video clips were a little grainy, especially when shown on full screen, but otherwise all of the clips were excellent. The video screen controls are the now standard ones used with all similar programmes and are user friendly.
As an educational tool, this book and CD-ROM combination is excellent and any criticisms are minor. One would have expected a chapter on the Cerebellar Ataxias as these conditions are typically included within the movement disorders specialty. More emphasis could have been given to the more common Parkinson's Plus Syndromes, such as that related to cerebrovascular disease, as this would help the reader to get the differential diagnosis in perspective. The chapter on surgery for Parkinson's disease was particularly detailed and thus out of keeping with the rest of the book, but this is a common criticism of multi-author publications. There was also some repetition of levodopa-induced movement disorders in both the Parkinson's disease and drug-induced movement disorders chapters, which was unnecessary.
In conclusion, this book and CD-ROM set should find their way into the libraries of all neurology departments and medical schools. Similar contributions in other sub-specialties of neurology and medicine in general should be welcomed by juniors and seniors alike.
Notes
Edited by Guy Sawle.1999. Oxford: Isis Medical Media Ltd.Price £85. Pp. 228. ISBN 1-899066-60-8.
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