Neurological Disorders: Public Health Challenges

Front Cover
World Health Organization, 2006 - 218 pages
There is ample evidence that pinpoints neurological disorders as one of the greatest threats to public health. There are several gaps in understanding the many issues related to neurological disorders, but we already know enough about their nature and treatment to be able to shape effective policy responses to some of the most prevalent among them.

Neurological disorders: public health challenges, describes and discusses the increasing global public health importance of common neurological disorders such as dementia, epilepsy, headache disorders, multiple sclerosis, neuroinfections, neurological disorders associated with malnutrition, pain associated with neurological disorders, Parkinson's disease, stroke and traumatic brain injuries.

The book provides the public health perspective for these disorders and presents fresh and updated estimates and predictions of the global burden borne by them. It provides information and advice on public health interventions that may be applied to reduce the occurrence and consequences of neurological disorders. It offers health professionals and planners the opportunity to assess the burden caused by these disorders in their country and to take appropriate action.

A clear message emerges that unless immediate action is taken globally, the neurological burden is likely to become an increasingly serious and unmanageable problem in all countries.

From inside the book

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Page 127 - An unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage, or described in terms of such damage'.
Page 94 - MS to physical trauma and psychological stress: report of the Therapeutics and Technology Assessment Subcommittee of the American Academy of Neurology.
Page 184 - Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay, Venezuela.
Page 28 - One DALY can be thought of as one lost year of 'healthy' life and the burden of disease as a measurement of the gap between current health status and an ideal situation where everyone lives into old age free of disease and disability".
Page 53 - Head trauma as a risk factor for Alzheimer's disease: a collaborative re-analysis of case-control studies. EURODEM Risk Factors Research Group.
Page 185 - Kyrgyz Republic Lao PDR Lesotho Liberia Madagascar Malawi Mali Mauritania Moldova Mongolia Mozambique Myanmar Nepal Nicaragua Niger Nigeria Pakistan...
Page 53 - DE (1997). Atherosclerosis, apolipoprotein E, and prevalence of dementia and Alzheimer's disease in the Rotterdam Study. Lancet, 349, 151-154.
Page 90 - MS. lt defines rehabilitation as an active process by which those impaired by injury or disease achieve a full recovery or, if a full recovery is not possible, realize their optimal physical, mental, and social potential and are integrated into their most appropriate environment.
Page 72 - Headache or facial pain associated with disorder of cranium, neck, eyes, ears, nose, sinuses, teeth, mouth, or other facial or cranial structures...
Page 184 - Nauru, New Zealand, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Republic of Korea, Samoa, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Thailand, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Viet Nam.

About the author (2006)

World Health Organization is a Specialized Agency of the United Nations, charged to act as the world's directing and coordinating authority on questions of human health. It is responsible for providing leadership on global health matters, shaping the health research agenda, setting norms and standards, articulating evidence-based policy options, providing technical support to countries, and monitoring and assessing health trends.

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