Neurovascular Neuropsychology

Neurovascular diseases and conditions, and their associated risk factors, represent a significant cause of cognitive disability in the United States and throughout the world. In the USA alone there are 750,000 new strokes each year, representing the number one cause of disability in the country. Hypertension, found in approximately 50 million Americans, has been shown to be associated with alterations of cognitive function, even in the absence of stroke and dementia. Recent studies of neurovascular disease have now revealed that neuropsychological function may be a more sensitive measure of brain integrity than coordination, motor or sensory function and correlates will with functional outcome measures. Neurovascular Neuropsychology focuses on focal and diffuse neurovascular disease in addition to systemic conditions in which cognition and behavior have been uniquely associated with different pathologic states. With an increasing number of patients being treated by healthcare professionals, Neurovascular Neuropsychology will prove to be a strong reference to consult in regards to neuropsychological syndromes.

This book covers the explosion of new information about the relationship between the brain and its blood supply since the first edition was published in 2009. With new knowledge and its impact on clinical care, neurovascular neuropsychology has become a recognized sub-specialty that has been integrated into health care systems in the US and abroad. The second edition brings to this larger audience the latest word on these matters, with new emphasis on women’s issues, relevance to the pediatric population, insights from modern imaging, and advances in medical and surgical treatments such as heart transplantation, cardiovascular transarterial therapies, and noninvasive brain stimulation in connection with neurocognitive outcomes.

Compiled reviews of the recent literature are a long established tradition in the laboratory and clinical sciences, and bring to their professions a useful and timely summary of the advances that have been made in the field. Neuropsychology has matured as a science and profession to support a like effort to summarize, across domains, the direction and momentum in the field. The authors are authorities in the subjects they review and provide for the investigator, practitioner and student an overview of the important developments in neuropsychology that cannot be realized from perusal of the journals alone. Interest in the reviews are likely to go beyond the discipline of neuropsychology, and will extend to all with an interest in science of brain-behavior relationships, in the study of disease and injury as they affect brain function, and in the rehabilitation of the individual who has suffered insult to brain. Chapters cover the pragmatic application of tests and test findings to improve our understanding of the behavior of individuals who present with neurocognitive disorders. Where there is interest in efficiently acquiring a sound perspective of the important advances and the future direction of neuropsychology, Neuropsychology: A Review of Science and Practice will provide the means for so doing as no other publication can offer.

This unique volume teaches those in the medical fields about the scientific value of neuropsychology in assessing cognition, the 6th vital sign, as part of well integrated collaborative care. It offers physicians a comprehensive tour of the many dimensions neuropsychology can add to primary and specialized medical care across the lifespan. Noted experts examine cognitive ramifications of a wide range of medical, psychological, and neuropsychological conditions, among them brain tumors, stroke, epilepsy, pediatric and adult TBI, schizophrenia, and adult ADHD. The book’s generous selection of case examples demonstrates the benefits of cognitive assessment in building accurate diagnoses, better understanding of patient needs, and more appropriate treatment and management strategies, as well as other neuropsychologist roles in consulting, referral, and forensic areas. In addition, tables, callout boxes, review questions, and other features are included throughout the text for ease in comprehension and retention. A sampling of the coverage: · The value of neuropsychological evaluation in medical practice. · A model of collaboration between primary care and neuropsychology. · Neuropsychological assessment of extremely preterm children. · Alzheimer’s Disease and overview of dementia. · Deep brain stimulation for Parkinson’s Disease. · Neuropsychology in the 21st century: the rise of multicultural assessment. · Neuropsychological interventions for individuals with brain injury. The Physician’s Field Guide to Neuropsychology is both a rigorous and an accessible reference for clinicians in diverse disciplines including general practice, family medicine, neuropsychology, pediatrics, gerontology, and sports medicine.

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the United States and most westernized nations. Both CVDs and their risk factors confer substantial risk for stroke and dementia, but are also associated with more subtle changes in brain structure and function and cognitive performance prior to such devastating clinical outcomes. It has been suggested that there exists a continuum of brain abnormalities and cognitive difficulties associated with increasingly severe manifestations of cardiovascular risk factors and diseases that precede vascular cognitive impairment and may ultimately culminate in stroke or dementia. This second edition examines the relations of a host of behavioral and biomedical risk factors, in addition to subclinical and clinical CVDs, to brain and cognitive function. Associations with dementia and pre-dementia cognitive performance are reported, described, and discussed with a focus on underlying brain mechanisms. Future research agendas are suggested, and clinical implications are considered. The volume is a resource for professionals and students in neuropsychology, behavioral medicine, neurology, cardiology, cardiovascular and behavioral epidemiology, gerontology, geriatric medicine, nursing, adult developmental psychology, and for other physicians and health care professionals who work with patients with, or at risk for, CVDs.

Formal training in clinical neuropsychology introduces trainees to diverse patient populations with a variety of conditions and disorders. Learning to competently apply a structured, fact-finding approach to case conceptualization, differential diagnosis, and treatment planning is an essential goal at all levels of training. This approach provides a valuable exercise and method of examining practitioner competence. The structured approach to case analysis promotes good clinical decision making, and exercises based on such an approach can help prepare clinicians for the oral exams that are a part of board certification. The Neuropsychology Fact-Finding Casebook is a resource for both supervisors and trainees in clinical neuropsychology, as well as for clinicians preparing for board certification. The volume provides 24 compelling and diverse fact-finding cases, one for each month of a two-year residency. Each case is presented in a stepwise fashion: presenting problem and referral question, background information and patient report, behavioral observations, and test findings. At the end of each case, a summary, diagnostic impression, recommendations, and questions are provided to assess, reinforce, and teach core competencies; an outcome section describes what occurred after the full case evaluation is completed; and critical teaching points are discussed. This Casebook is a standardized approach to fact-finding that training programs at various levels can use to help trainees develop such evaluation skills.

The goal of this book is to provide brief-but-comprehensive information that can aid in rapid differential diagnosis and allow for more thorough follow-up if needed. This guide is intended to fit easily into the pocket of a lab coat or on your desk, giving readers an efficient way to find information about a specific disease or disorder to prepare for an upcoming case. The book is divided into two parts: Part 1 involves general psychometric and reference information including score classifications, formulas for score conversion, likelihood chaining, and reliable change, psychometric data for stand-alone and embedded PVTs, and the effects of common medications on cognition. Part 2 of the book is organized alphabetically by disease or disorder to promote quick searching, and each chapter provides straightforward information including definitions, subtypes, etiology, epidemiology, course, diagnostic criteria, expectations for test results, and links to more comprehensive sources. Whenever possible, information is gathered through up-to-date literature and high quality pubilcations such as systematic reviews or meta-analyses. Helpful references are provided for more extensive follow-up or further reading.

Print+CourseSmart