Epilepsy Book

Epilepsy is one of the most common neurological disorders, with a prevalence of 4-10/1000 and an incidence of 50-70/100,000 per year. It is often life-long, can appear at any age, and includes a diverse group of neurological disorders, which present considerable challenges in diagnosis and management. Therefore, it is a condition that will frequently be seen by GPs and by a wide range of specialist physicians, such as neurologists, psychiatrists, neurosurgeons, paediatricians, geriatricians, as well as allied health professionals, such as a nurses (in particular epilepsy specialist nurses), EEG technicians, neuropsychologists, and researchers with an interest in epilepsy. The diversity of epilepsy syndromes makes it difficult to achieve an adequate level of knowledge and expertise in their management.

Epilepsy is a comprehensive handbook which guides the reader through all aspects of epilepsy, both practical and academic, covering all aspects of diagnosis and management of the patient with epilepsy in a clear, concise, and practical fashion. The book appeals to a wide audience by teaching a simple but highly practical method to approaching the classification and diagnosis of epilepsy, and then provides patient-centered information on pharmacological and non-pharmacological management.

Doody Review Services

Reviewer:Joseph f Drazkowski , MD(Mayo Clinic Hospital)
Description:This small pocket handbook covers all important aspects of clinical epilepsy care, including acute care and social issues, in addition to standard therapies for epilepsy. The size makes it ideal for learners to use in the clinic or hospital.
Purpose:The purpose is to provide a quick and easy reference for learners and practitioners who treat epilepsy patients.
Audience:Residents, medical students, nurses, and others who treat people with epilepsy are the intended audience. The book actually is fairly comprehensive, particularly given its size and focus.
Features:This book covers essentially all major topics related to caring for people with epilepsy, from diagnosis to treatment to the social issues unique to epilepsy. The best aspect of the book is the organization and the clear but concise style which uses bullet points to direct learners to important data. Given the small size of the book, and with multiple images on one page, the illustrations are too small, which is especially true in the case of MRI and EEG examples. With the EEG illustrations, the settings used to record the EEG are not easy to read due to the size of the print. Those not familiar with these diagnostic tests may find them difficult to appreciate the abnormalities. The black-and-white photographs also make it challenging to see abnormalities (e.g. the photo on page 477 depicting hypomelanotic lesions). References in the book for social resources and consequences of epilepsy, as well as the economic impact of epilepsy, apply uniquely to the U.K., so will be of limited value to readers elsewhere.
Assessment:Overall, this is a practical book for those caring for people with epilepsy. It meets the objectives of providing a quick and handy reference for those new to caring for people with epilepsy, notwithstanding its limitations.