Synopses & Reviews
The book covers the immunological and clinical aspects of immune-mediated diseases of the central and peripheral nervous system, excluding multiple sclerosis. It includes paraneoplastic neurological disorders, and discusses the immune mechanisms in the growing number of recognised paraneoplastic conditions. It not only provides an overview of the field but also discusses the possible role of immunity in other neurological disorders such as epilepsy. Chapters are written by scientists and clinicians directly involved in each specific area, who have summarized the current understanding of neuroimmunology, with emphasis on the underlying abormalities of the immune responses, the different clinical expression of the diseases and the important use of immunotherapies in treatment. Figures and tables are included in each chapter.
Synopsis
Immune-mediated neurological disorders present an increasing challenge to neu- rologists. Recent advances have identified new antibodies, new effector mechanisms and new diagnostic tests; these have greatly enhanced our understanding of disease aetiology and opened up therapeutic opportunities, but a critical understanding of this fast -developing field is not easy to find. This volume was conceived following a very successful course on neuroimmu- no logy in Bergamo in 2000, and was written mainly by clinicians who are active in the laboratory. It will help to keep practising neurologists and neuroimmuno- logists abreast of the most recent developments, and to assess new information more critically. Angela Vincent and Gianvito Martino should be congratulated on master-min- ding this timely and practical text. July 2001 J. Newsom-Davis Professor Emeritus University of Oxford Table of Contents Introduction -Approaches to Understanding Immune-Mediated Neurological Disorders: Measuring and Evaluating Autoantibodies to Neuronal Antigens G. MARTINO, A. VINCENT ..--.-...-...-..--...-.--..-....--.--.....
Table of Contents
Approaches to understanding immune-mediated neurological disorders; Cellular and humoral immunity in myasthenia gravis (MG) and acquired neuromyotonia; Immunological basis of maternal myasthenia gravis (MG); Immunological mechanisms of Lambert-Eaton syndrome; Immunotherapy of myasthenia gravis; The ontogeny of the muscle cell; Idiopathic inflammatory polimyopathies: immunological mechanisms; Overview of immunological mechanisms of paraneoplastic nervous system diseases; Clinical presentation and mechanisms of immunomediated cerebellar ataxia; Stiff-person syndrome: paraneoplastic and immunological background; Paraneoplastic neuropathies: a neuropathological overview; The Opsoclonus-Myoclonus Syndrome in childhood; Autoimmunity and epilepsy; Primary and secondary vasculitis of the CNS: immunological issues.