Foreword Neurosurgical residency can be the most exciting and memorable experience of one's life. Faced daily with patients who bestow their trust in us to solve their inherently unique and often challenging problems, we are given an ultimate responsibility that requires tireless commitment. An attempt to solve each problem requires a repertoire of knowledge, skills, and experience. A thorough knowledge of the clinical neurosciences and related disciplines is therefore a prerequisite. From a purely practical standpoint, this thorough knowledge is also required for successful completion of the primary certification process of the American Board of Neurological Surgery, and for the upcoming implementation of maintenance of certification whose successful periodic completion will become mandatory for practicing neurosurgeons. Neurosurgical residency is also a challenging and demanding undertaking. The amount of knowledge required can appear daunting. A tremendous amount of time can be spent in attempting to collect and organize material from multiple sources including standard references encompassing the disciplines of neuroanatomy, neurophysiology, neurobiology, neurology, neuropathology, neuroradiology, neurosurgery and critical care medicine. This compromises the time available to learn the material. Moreover, when one attempts to return to review material, multiple sources often need to be referred to and the lack of one consolidated source of organized information again becomes apparent. This superb review book by Dr. Shawn Moore and colleagues combines all requisite material for board review preparation into a single source that is readable and splendidly illustrated. This work should be appreciated by future generations of neurosurgical residents. The field of neurosurgery is ever-changing. This reference will also serve as a framework that one can add to as new and important developments unfold. In doing so, a trustworthy compendium that can be referred to for years to come may be created. This reference should also prove to be valuable to anyone interested or involved in the clinical neurosciences. Learning neurosurgery is clearly a demanding and never-ending journey. This unique work of Dr. Moore will make parts of the neurosurgical journey a little easier for future generations. John A. Jane, Sr., M.D., Ph.D., FRCSC(C) David D. Weaver Professor of Neurosurgery Chairman, Department of Neurological Surgery University of Virginia Charlottesville, Virginia Chairman's Note Dr. Moore and his contributors have perceptively identified a significant void in the existing neurosurgical literature and industriously filled it with a concise, well-organized compendium of essential information. Rather than a patchwork of isolated facts, they offer the reader a tightly knit narrative accompanied by appropriate anatomical sketches, radiological images and pathological sections that illustrate each section without redundancy. The result is a methodical (and memorable) presentation of the

"nitty gritty" of both basic and clinical neuro-science. This ambitious work is neither a simplified primer nor a bedtime storybook - it's a lean, mean teaching machine that seeks to encompass the basic fund of information essential to neurosurgical residents and fellows. In large measure it is successful, and that success will quickly make it a prime resource for both in-training examination preparation and board examination review. Duke S. Samson, M.D. Professor and Chairman Lois C.A. and Darwin E. Smith Distinguished Chair in Neurological Surgery Department of Neurological Surgery University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas Dallas, Texas