Great progress has been made in the understanding and prevention of secondary brain damage from acute cerebral disorders, such as trauma and ischemia. Advances may be concerned in particular with better organization and logistics of preclinical emergency care, including rapid arrival of well-trained medical staff on the scene of an accident and of transportation to a competent hospital. Nevertheless, it is a safe assumption that development of secondary brain damage from both intra- and ex...

Brain resuscitation is the therapeutic intervention for critically ill patients with severe brain damage, particularly the types caused by ischemia and hypoxia. The The objective of the International Symposium on Brain Resuscitation held in Ube, Yamaguchi Japan October 31 to November 2 1988, and sponsored by Yamaguchi University and the Japanese Ministry of Education, was to review our recent progress in brain resuscitation and to discuss controversies both basic and clinical. To my knowle...

This issue of Current Topics in Behavioral Neuroscience focuses on the neuropeptide orexin (hypocretin) and brings together scientists from around the world who will provide a timely discussion of how this peptide regulates behavior. This is a fast-moving field, and with the incorporation of novel technologies, new breakthroughs are likely to continue. For example, the use of optogenetic approaches has enabled the identification of the role of orexin-containing neurons in arousal ...

Anesthetics produce a reversible state of unconsciousness accompanied by ante- grade amnesia. This remarkable phenomenon brings great relief to surgical patients and wonder to clinicians and scientists. To date, we do not fully understand the mechanisms by which anesthetics ablate conscious sensation and memory. We are, however, making progress. This book presents original results as well as overviews of the current state of knowledge of the problem. It is authored by investigators who kno...

A comprehensive, state-of-the-art contribution to a field that is rapidly developing, The Behavioral Consequences of Stroke provides a broad overview of the cognitive and neurobehavioral effects of stroke. As attention to paralysis and the more obvious physical disabilities stroke patients incur expands, greater attention is being paid today to the cognitive and neurobehavioral complications that impact stroke morbidity and even functional neurological recovery in patients. Writte...

As an addition to the European postgraduate training system for young neurosurgeons we began to publish in 1974 this series devoted to Advances and Technical Standards in Neurosurgery which was later sponsored by the European Association of Neurosurgical Societies. The fact that the English language is well on the way to becoming the international medium at European scientific conferences is a great asset in terms of mutual understanding. Therefore we have decided to publish all contributi...

Primary sensory neurons respond to peripheral stimulation and project to the spinal cord. Specifically, the population of neurons which respond to damaging stimuli terminate in the superficial layers of the dorsal horn. Therefore, the dorsal horns constitute the first relay site for nociceptive fibre terminals which make synaptic contacts with second order neurons. It has recently become clear that the strength of this first pain synapse is plastic and modifiable by several modulators, inc...

This book provides a comprehensive review of the latest advances in translational pain and itch research, and presents the cutting-edge developments in the study of our two principal, yet most mysteries sensations. Despite the slow progress in the discovery of effective therapies for chronic pain and pruritus, scientists around the globe now have a better understanding of why and how these conditions occur. Based on these findings, a series of novel treatment strategies are currently under...

Any man’s death diminishes me, because I am involved in Mankind —John Donne 1 In 1988 Belhouse and Dore estimated that as many as 600 people died every year from complications of airway management in the developed world. The tragedy of this statistic was that most of these deaths were preventable. Inf- mation on airway-related topics has increased exponentially since we published the first edition of this book. In the past 10 years, almost 2000 English-language publications have been publi...

The provision of anesthesia during childbirth still generates considerable debate; opinions vary widely within the obstetric anesthesia community over issues such as the effect of anesthetic drugs on the fetal brain and the choice between different epidural techniques. Controversies in Obstetric Anesthesia and Analgesia debates these and other clinical management controversies encountered in daily practice, providing practical advice on how to manage each clinical problem. This concise, pr...