We are pleased to bring a second edition of the Neurology volume to the 5-Minute Consult series. This resource is intended to present current clinical information to several groups:

• Busy clinical practitioners in neurology general practice, emergency rooms, and non-neurologic specialties who need a reference source where they can quickly refresh their knowledge about the basics of a neurologic condition
• Residents and students seeking rapid access to basic data about diagnosis and treatment for various neurologic conditions
• Patients and families who want quick information about their diagnoses and referrals to patient information sources and support organizations

Neurology is an area of medicine that incites anxiety and discomfort for many students, nurses, and physicians who have not trained in the specialty. Effective therapeutic interventions continue to expand and flourish; every practitioner must understand the diagnosis and treatment of basic neurologic conditions. Information is provided in a structured format that allows easy access and rapid assimilation. We have attempted to offer relevant and current references. We hope that this rapid information source will help all to approach patients suffering from neurologic disorders with more confidence. It has been a great honor and pleasure to work with the many chapter authors who have shared their expertise in and enthusiasm for clinical neurology. Some are young stars while others are accomplished masters in neurology, but all have attempted to provide the best distillation of relevant information for each condition. The staff at Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, including Louise Bierig and Tom Gibbons, kept us on track in this effort with advice, encouragement, and humor.

Practice is science touched with emotion.

—Stephen Paget, Confessio Medici, 1909

D.J.L.

H.B.N.

A.D.R-G.