Clinical Manual of Neuropsychiatry

The Clinical Manual of Neuropsychiatryfocuses on the assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of the full spectrum of neuropsychiatric disorders, as well as those diseases that have significant neuropsychiatric components. With the help of this highly practical manual, clinicians are empowered to evaluate patients and treat the neuropsychiatric aspects of a host of diseases. The manual: " Sets forth a concise, step-by-step approach to assessing patients, beginning with the indications for a neuropsychological evaluation, and progressing through the patient interview, physical examination, and measures that are useful diagnostic indicators, such as psychological testing and quantitative and functional neuroimaging." Offers complete physiological and epidemiological information about each condition, providing much-needed context and helping the clinician to identify the focal neurological symptoms to look for, potential contributing factors, and the course a disease is likely to follow." Covers the general neuropsychiatric and neuropsychological considerations the clinician must take into account when attempting to understand the factors that influence presenting symptoms and behavioral changes. For example, intracranial pressure is a nonspecific consequence of central nervous system (CNS) tumors and has been implicated in behavior changes such as apathy and depression." Aids the clinician in making a clinical diagnosis through evaluating a patient's neurological signs and symptoms, taking a careful history, and physically examining the patient." Addresses the full range of available treatment options, including psychopharmacological, psychotherapeutic, and cognitive rehabilitation modalities. " Presents an utterly up-to-date chapter on psychopharmacological treatment of patients with neuropsychiatric disorders, including an abundance of tables that compare indications, efficacy, and side effect profiles for the full range of drugs that may be prescribed. While acknowledging the ongoing dialogue on the nature of neuropsychiatry, Clinical Manual of Neuropsychiatryfocuses on the paramount duty of the physician, whether psychiatrist or neurologist: To understand each patient's underlying disease and to ease the suffering it causes. This meticulously referenced, intelligently illustrated, and elegantly structured volume deserves a place in both the beginning and seasoned clinician's library.