Abstract:
The purpose of an exercise in differential diagnosis is to establish crosslinks between medical facts stored in different sections of our memory. This book, Differential Diagnosis in Neurology, is the unified perspective of an eminent physician with decades of clinical experience and teaching; one of the most skilled clinical neurologists of modern times and a seasoned researcher who was the primary investigator for many clinical trials, and who published numerous clinical and basic research papers. The “real world” aspects of the book are based on morning reports with neurology residents and students conducted over 40 years. The differential diagnosis generated by subspecialty division chiefs supplemented those proposed in morning reports. The book is conceived as a guide that will give the clinician a concise snapshot or skeleton with a general background of the disease at hand. Other disease aspects included in this book are molecular genetics, physiology, and biochemistry that will elucidate mechanisms and assist in discovering new entities. Each chapter includes an extensive list of suggestions for further reading. It is the art of crosslinking between medical facts that distinguishes Dr. Schwartzman from other teachers of Neurology and that makes this book uniquely valuable. “The essence of a differential diagnosis is ‘splitting’ rather than ‘lumping’: it requires bringing knowledge to the table and then adding experience.” - R.J. Schwartzman
