Fundamentals of Neurosurgery. A Guide for Clinicians and Medical Students

Neuroanatomy Applied to Clinical Practice.- Basic Neurological Examination Intracranial Hypertension.- Traumatic Brain Injury.- Spinal Trauma.- Subarachnoid Haemorrhage.- Neurosurgery for Ischemic and Hemorrhagic Stroke.- Hydrocephalus - Basic Concepts and Initial Management.- Spinal Dysraphism.- Craniosynostosis .- Management of Low Back Pain.- Peripheral Nervous System - Neurosurgical Pearls.- Degenerative Lumbar Spine Disease.- Degenerative Cervical Spine Disease.- Brain Tumors in Adults.- Brain Tumors in Children.- Brain Death.- Social and Economic Burden of Misdiagnosing in Medicine: A Current Overview.- The Frontiers of Neurosurgery.

The aim of this book is to provide clinicians and medical students with basic knowledge of the most common neurosurgical disorders. There is a vast array of signs and symptoms that every clinician should recognize as neurosurgical affectations, allowing them to identify when to refer the patient to a neurosurgeon. In this text, the editors intend to bridge the gap between clinical medicine and neurosurgery, making neurosurgical practice understandable to a wider medical public.

The book provides a smooth transition from neuroanatomy, neurophysiology and neurological examination to neurosurgery, focusing more on the knowledge underlying neurosurgical practice rather than on surgical technique. The core of the book is composed of chapters discussing each of the most important medical conditions that deserve neurosurgical intervention, providing key information on diagnosis, clinical aspects, disease management, surgical procedures and prognosis. Moreover, complementary discussion of the frontiers and advances in neurosurgery are also covered.

In this sense, this book has two main goals and intended audiences. First, and primarily, it is intended for clinicians in a wide array of non-surgical medical specialties (such as general practitioners, neurologists, pediatricians, oncologists and others) aiming to give an overview on important characteristics and initial management of the most prevalent disorders treated by neurosurgeons. Second, and to a lesser degree, it is intended to be used as a practical guide for medical students who are initiating their study in neurosurgical sciences. Fundamentals of Neurosurgery - A Guide for Clinicians and Medical Students intends to be a comprehensive guide for all non-neurosurgeons who want to broaden their knowledge of neurosurgery.

Andrei Fernandes Joaquim: MD (2004) by the State University of Sao Paulo (Brazil). Residency in neurosurgery (2009) and PhD (2011) at the State University of Campinas (UNICAMP - Brazil). Specializations in spine surgery (2008 - University of Virginia, USA), in spinal trauma (2010 - University of Utah, USA) and in complex spine disorders (2014 - University of San Francisco, USA). Current professor of neurosurgery and head of the Spine Division of UNICAMP. Has published more than 100 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters. Post-doctoral fellow of the University of Sao Paulo (Brazil).

Enrico Ghizoni: MD (2000) and PhD (2012) by the State University of Campinas (UNICAMP - Brazil). Residency in Neurosurgery at UNICAMP (2004). Professor of neurological surgery and head of the Pediatric Neurosurgery Division at UNICAMP.

Helder Tedeschi: MD (1983) by the Santa Casa Medical School (Sao Paulo, Brazil) and PhD (2000) by the University of Sao Paulo (Brazil). Head of the Neurosurgery Division of the at the University of Campinas (Brazil), responsible for the Oncological, Epilepsy and Vascular division of the Neurosurgery discipline.

Mauro Augusto Tostes Ferreira: Staff Member of the Neurological Surgery Division at the Hospital das Clinicas, Minas Gerais Federal University Medical School (Brazil). He has experience in tumor, vascular, and skull base surgery. He has completed a Full Clinical Fellowship in Neurosurgery with Prof. Evandro de Oliveira in Sao Paulo, Brazil, and has dedicated another three-years period of Research Fellowship at the Barrow Neurological Institute (USA).