Behavioral neurology
Encyclopedia
Behavioral neurology is a subspecialty of neurology
that studies the neurological basis of behavior, memory, and cognition, the impact of neurological damage and disease upon these functions, and the treatment thereof. Two fields associated with behavioral neurology are neuropsychiatry
and neuropsychology
. In the United States
, 'Behavioral Neurology and Neuropsychiatry' has been recognized as a single subspecialty by the United Council for Neurologic Subspecialties (UCNS) since 2004.
Behavioral neurology is that speciality of one, which deals with the study of neurological basis of behavior, memory, and cognition, and their impact of damage and disease and treatment.
Syndromes and diseases commonly studied by behavioral neurology include but are not limited to:
and then Carl Wernicke. Localizationist neurology and clinical descriptions reached a peak in the late 19th and early 20th century, with work extending into the clinical descriptions of dementias by Alois Alzheimer
and Arnold Pick
. The work of Karl Lashley
in rats for a time in the early to mid 20th century put a damper on localization theory and lesion models of behavioral function. In the United States, the work of Norman Geschwind
led to a renaissance of behavioral neurology. Geschwind is famous for his work on disconnection syndromes and his legacy lives on through the generations of behavioral neurologists trained by Dr. Geschwind and his former fellows. The advent of in vivo neuroimaging starting in the 1980s led to a further strengthening of interest in the cognitive neurosciences and provided a tool that allowed for lesion, structural, and functional correlations with behavioral dysfunction in living people.
Neurology
Neurology is a medical specialty dealing with disorders of the nervous system. Specifically, it deals with the diagnosis and treatment of all categories of disease involving the central, peripheral, and autonomic nervous systems, including their coverings, blood vessels, and all effector tissue,...
that studies the neurological basis of behavior, memory, and cognition, the impact of neurological damage and disease upon these functions, and the treatment thereof. Two fields associated with behavioral neurology are neuropsychiatry
Neuropsychiatry
Neuropsychiatry is the branch of medicine dealing with mental disorders attributable to diseases of the nervous system. It preceded the current disciplines of psychiatry and neurology, in as much as psychiatrists and neurologists had a common training....
and neuropsychology
Neuropsychology
Neuropsychology studies the structure and function of the brain related to specific psychological processes and behaviors. The term neuropsychology has been applied to lesion studies in humans and animals. It has also been applied to efforts to record electrical activity from individual cells in...
. In the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, 'Behavioral Neurology and Neuropsychiatry' has been recognized as a single subspecialty by the United Council for Neurologic Subspecialties (UCNS) since 2004.
Behavioral neurology is that speciality of one, which deals with the study of neurological basis of behavior, memory, and cognition, and their impact of damage and disease and treatment.
Syndromes and diseases commonly studied by behavioral neurology include but are not limited to:
History
While descriptions of behavioral syndromes go back to the ancient Greeks and Egyptians, it was during the 19th century that behavioral neurology began to arise, first with the primitive localization theories of Franz Gall, followed in the mid 19th century by the first localizations in aphasias by Paul BrocaPaul Broca
Pierre Paul Broca was a French physician, surgeon, anatomist, and anthropologist. He was born in Sainte-Foy-la-Grande, Gironde. He is best known for his research on Broca's area, a region of the frontal lobe that has been named after him. Broca’s Area is responsible for articulated language...
and then Carl Wernicke. Localizationist neurology and clinical descriptions reached a peak in the late 19th and early 20th century, with work extending into the clinical descriptions of dementias by Alois Alzheimer
Alois Alzheimer
Aloysius "Alois" Alzheimer, was a German psychiatrist and neuropathologist and a colleague of Emil Kraepelin. Alzheimer is credited with identifying the first published case of "presenile dementia", which Kraepelin would later identify as Alzheimer's disease....
and Arnold Pick
Arnold Pick
Arnold Pick was a Czech neurologist and psychiatrist. He is known for identifying the clinical syndrome of Pick's Disease and the Pick bodies that are characteristic of the disorder. He was the first to name reduplicative paramnesia. He was also to use the term dementia praecox .- External links...
. The work of Karl Lashley
Karl Lashley
-External links:*...
in rats for a time in the early to mid 20th century put a damper on localization theory and lesion models of behavioral function. In the United States, the work of Norman Geschwind
Norman Geschwind
Norman Geschwind pioneered behavioral neurology in America. He is best known for his exploration of behavioral neurology through disconnection models based on lesion analysis.- Early life :...
led to a renaissance of behavioral neurology. Geschwind is famous for his work on disconnection syndromes and his legacy lives on through the generations of behavioral neurologists trained by Dr. Geschwind and his former fellows. The advent of in vivo neuroimaging starting in the 1980s led to a further strengthening of interest in the cognitive neurosciences and provided a tool that allowed for lesion, structural, and functional correlations with behavioral dysfunction in living people.