Document Download: World Neurology - November 2016

Published by Ascend Integrated Media LLC, Kansas, USA

From the editors

Steven L. Lewis, MD, Editor, and Walter Struhal, MD, Co-Editor

We are very pleased to introduce the November/December 2016 issue of World Neurology, which starts with the report from the Sept 12, 2016, Council of Delegates meeting that was held in Prague, Czech Republic. In his President's Column, Raad Shakir, MD, describes the close relationship and tight collaboration of the World Federation of Neurology (WFN) and the six WFN regional organisations and the role of the World Congress of Neurology in enhancing the regions.

Wolfgang Grisold, MD, the secretary-general of the WFN, reports on the activities of the Austrian Society of Neurology related to the July 22, 2016 third Day of the Brain, and Federico Pelli-Noble, MD, reports on the Day of the Brain activities that occurred on the same day in Tucuman, Argentina. Christopher Gardner-Thorpe, MD, also provides a thoughtful discussion on neurology and international relations.

Kate Riney, MD, PhD, updates us on epilepsydiagnosis.org, an extensive and unique online tool for diagnostic information on the epilepsies, which can be of benefit to all neurologists (and our patients) globally. There are also a number of book reviews in this issue, including one from Edward J. Fine, MD, on Brain Renaissance from Vesalius to Modern Neuroscience. Dr. Grisold reviews Teaching and Tuition of Neurology and Neurosurgery in Indonesia During One Century: 1850-1950, and Yuri Takeuchi, MD, reviews Mentored by a Madman: The William Burroughs Experiment.

Also in this issue, Mustapha El Alaoui Faris, MD, provides us with an overview of the Continuum program in Morocco, as a model for other regional programs based on Continuum, the official continuing medical education publication of the American Academy of Neurology (AAN) and with which a joint AAN-WFN effort helps provide Continuum to user groups in various countries where this resource is needed. We look forward to future contributions from other regional Continuum user groups to highlight how this important educational resource is being utilised to support neurologic education and patient care. Also, in what we hope will be the model of many similar contributions for future issues, we know readers will appreciate seeing a "Photo of the Issue" that was provided by Professor. Shakir, showing Jun Kimura, MD, giving a recent EMG workshop at the Lebanese Society of Neurology in Beirut.

John D. England, MD, provides his editor-in-chief's update from the Journal of the Neurological Sciences, the official journal of the WFN, and personally reflects on the recent loss of two leaders in academic neurology, Donald Gilden, MD, and Omar Khan, MD, Finally, Donald Silberberg, MD, the past editor of World Neurology, provides an extremely heartfelt tribute in his obituary for Dr. Gilden.

Highlights

• WFN 2017 Elections: Submit Your Candidate Recommendations

  On Sept. 17, 2017, at the Annual General Meeting of the World Federation of Neurology Council of Delegates during the World Congress of Neurology in Kyoto, Japan, elections will be held for the following posts:

  • President to take up office from Jan. 1, 2018 (position vacated by Raad Shakir, MD, not eligible for re-election)

  • First vice president to take up office from Jan. 1, 2018 (position vacated by William M. Carroll, MD, not eligible for re-election as first vice president)

  • One elected trustee to take up office from Sept. 18, 2017 (position vacated by Riadh Gouider, MD, eligible for re-election)

• BOOK REVIEW Mentored by a Madman: The William Burroughs Experiment
  By Yuri Takeuchi, MD

  A mentor is a preceptor who imparts wisdom and shares knowledge with less experienced colleagues. During medical training, it is customary to have a teacher who guides the future physician in approaching patients with the right clinical tools, bedside manner, and generosity that characterizes a good physician.

• INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS: A Call to Foster International Relations
  By Christopher Gardner-Thorpe, MD

  It would be trite to say that at no time have good international relations been more necessary than now. We live largely in communities, and, ultimately, everything we do is dependent upon the consent of others. We can achieve our human aims peacefully or by the alternative approach. Hence relations between all of us as individuals, as communities, and as nations, need to be nurtured — and this involves compromise.

• BOOK REVIEW: From Vesalius to Modern Neuroscience
  By Edward J. Fine, MD

  In Brain Renaissance From Vesalius to Modern Neuroscience, authors Marco Catani and Stefano Sandrone have written chapters based on translations from Andreas Vesalius' book on the brain from his De Humani Corporis Fabrica, followed by commentaries. The book is published by Notting Hill Editions, 2016.

• BOOK REVIEW: A Century of Teaching and Tuition of Neurology and Neurosurgery in Indonesia
  By Wolfgang Grisold, MD

  The book Teaching and Tuition of Neurology and Neurosurgery in Indonesia During One Century (1850-1950) by Antoine Keyser provides a history of neurology in Indonesia, covering development of this field in different epochs of science and the changing political situation. It also memorably describes the research, theories, and final detection of beriberi in this part of the world.

• More Than 200 Attend 2016 World Brain Day in Argentina
  By Federico Pelli-Noble, MD, PhD

  World Brain Day was celebrated on July 22, 2016, in Tucuman, Argentina. All of the Organizations of Health were present, and the topics included dementia, Parkinson's disease, epilepsy, and neuromuscular diseases.

• Editor's Update and Selected Articles From the Journal of the Neurological Sciences
  By John D. England, MD

  August 2016 was an awful month for the world of neurology and the Journal of the Neurological Sciences. We suffered the loss of two outstanding academic neurologists, Omar Khan, MD, and Donald Gilden, MD. Both were valuable members of the Editorial Board of the Journal of the Neurological Sciences, and both were outstanding neurologists and academic teachers and researchers. Their loss creates a great void in the world of neurology.

• Continuum for Continuing Education in Morocco
  By Mustapha El Alaoui Faris, MD

  The Moroccan Society of Neurology had the recent privilege of using Continuum: Lifelong Learning in Neurology through the partnership between the American Academy of Neurology (AAN) and the World Federation of Neurology (WFN).

• Epilepsydiagnosis.org: A Novel Diagnostic Manual of the Epilepsies
  By Kate Riney, MD, PhD

  Although there is much information on the internet about epilepsy and seizures, there is a glaring absence of a single source of information that aligns with the international classification and provides an organized presentation of the many seizure types and syndromes to help with diagnosis and treatment.

• PRESIDENT'S COLUMN: How Does the WCN Enhance Regions?
  By Raad Shakir, MD

  The World Congress of Neurology (WCN) is the major event for a host society and is as important for the regions. There is no doubt that in each of the last four congresses the impact on the regions was positive, but to a varying degree as expected. This is one of the main reasons for holding congresses in rotation across continents.