"What could possibly go wrong?" : an introduction to neurotrauma -- "Bone windows" : trephination and the modern craniotomy -- "In with a bang" : the American crowbar case, Mr. Phineas Gage -- "No words to describe" : Patient Tan and aphasias -- "We're all mad here" : mercury toxicity and the origin of the phrase 'mad as a hatter' -- "My world of pure imagination" : Roald Dahl's journey from fighter pilot to children's author -- "Fast, affordable brain surgery for everyone!" : Walter Freeman, pioneer of the transorbital lobotomy -- "Hi, my name is Henry" : the world's most memorable amnestic, H.M -- "To Jodie with love" : James Brady's emotional journey -- "On shaky ground" : the frozen addicts and toxin-induced parkinsonism -- "The one true Superman" : Christopher Reeve's steps toward hope -- "A stream of water is endlessly beautiful" : Jason Padgett and acquired savant syndrome -- "Man bites dog" : how rabies encephalitis may someday be curable -- "Down like a ton of bricks" : Iron Mike Webster and chronic traumatic encephalopathy -- "Misery loves company" : similarities among highly variable TBIs/SCIs.
Summary:
"Using a popular case history format, this book presents a scientific history of neurotrauma. It covers a range of well-known cases, including Roald Dahl, James Brady and Walter Freeman to give insights into a variety of neurotraumas, from aphasia and amnesia to lobotomy and mercury toxicity. Cases are connected to clinical research methods, exploring how these methods have changed over time and illustrating how these cases are still relevant as we continue to learn about recovery from brain and spinal cord injuries. Focusing on individuals who survived their injuries beyond the acute phase, the book highlights the long-term behavioral effects of the injuries and provides estimates for prognoses and recovery pathways in acknowledgement of naturally occurring neuroregeneration. With helpful key term definitions, Matyas distinguishes fact from fiction to give an accurate account of a wide spectrum of cases and highlight what we can learn from them. Famous Case Histories in Neurotrauma is valuable reading for students in behavioral neuroscience, clinical neuropsychology and related fields"-- Provided by publisher.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.