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The past year has been a good year for neurology. With the major progress for neurological treatments and the aging of the population, neurology is becoming one of the key disciplines of medicine. Its organized bodies like the World Federation of Neurology, the regional societies in America, Asia and Europe as well as the specialty societies for stroke, movement disorders, dementia, multiple sclerosis and many other diseases are becoming the key drivers of this development.

The French Republic was born in 1793, fruit of a long and tormented political history. France is a constitutional republic with a semi presidential regimen, and it has around 67 million people. The French national statement is “to govern the nation, by the nation and for the nation”, which fits well with our motto: “liberté, égalité, fraternité”. The capital is Paris, and the official language is French. Paris and the French Riviera are both high touristic places.

For December 2017, we have selected: Dwivedi R, Ramanujam B, Chandra PS, et al. Surgery for drug-resistant epilepsy in children. NEJM 2017;377:1639-1647. Drug-resistant epilepsy can be particularly devastating in children due to the heavy impact on psychosocial aspects and quality of life of these little patients and their family.

It is not new that human disease is imposing a burden on the sufferers and a challenge for the physician. While neurologists are having the privilege being physicians and have the single patient in our focus of attention, health economists take a different view. Their thinking is focusing on the burden of disease for the society and its economic implications. They look at the costs of disease in different terms. The classical measures for the burden of disease are the costs in terms of disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) which are defined as the sum of years of life lost due to the disease (YLLs) and years lived with the disease (YLDs) accounting for reduced life time with good quality of life due to the disability. Another important measure is the Socio-demographic Index (SDI) reflecting economic and educational development. There is big science behind all these calculations which I will not go into detail here.

Situated at the north-eastern end of the Mediterranean basin, Cyprus is the third largest island in the region, with an area of 9,251 square kilometers (3,572 square miles). Cyprus is a small island with a long history and a rich culture that spans 10,000 years, making it one of the oldest civilizations in the Mediterranean area. Situated at the crossroads of three continents - Europe, Asia and Africa - the island’s unique geographic position has played an important part in its turbulent past since antiquity. The island was divided in 1974 following the Turkish invasion.

For November 2017, we have selected: Mittal S, Bjørnevik K, Im DS, et al. ß2-Adrenoreceptor is a regulator of the α-synuclein gene driving risk of Parkinson’s disease. Science 2017;140:2295-2305. Disturbed proteostasis of α-synuclein is now thought to play a critical role in the pathogenesis of Parkinson’s disease (PD). Physiological functions of this protein include synaptic transport as well as involvement in the metabolism of membrane phospholipids, and in the differentiation and survival of dopaminergic neurons.

Belgium occupies a central position in Western Europe, bordered by France, the Netherlands, Germany, Luxembourg, and the North Sea. Densely populated since ancient times, its inhabitants were famously dubbed by Caesar as “the strongest of the Gauls” (Horum omnium fortissimi sunt Belgae). In the Middle Ages this geographical area was occupied by independent fiefdoms which were later united with the northern Dutch provinces by the Dukes of Burgundy; together, they were called “The Low Countries”

Prof. Gunhild Waldemar (GW): Geriatric medicine has become very important in our fast ageing European population.I invite you to introduce the European Union Geriatric Medicine Society – EUGMS of which you are the president to the EANpages readership. Can you please explain to the readers of the EAN Pages what the EUGMS stands for and what its objectives and aims are? Prof. Stefania Maggi (SM): The European Union Geriatric Medicine Society, EUGMS, is the collaborating and co-ordinating organisation of the national geriatric medical societies of the European Union member states, but also includes Norway, Switzerland and Iceland. The EUGMS’ mission is to develop geriatric medicine in all member states as a recognised independent medical specialty, contributing to the care of all older people with age related diseases.

For October 2017, we have selected: Andersen G, Hedermann G, Witting N, Duno M, Andersen H, Vissing J. The antimyotonic effect of lamotrigine in non-dystrophic myotonias: a double-blind randomized study. Brain 2017;140:2295-2305. Patients with myotonia congenita and paramyotonia congenita can be disabled by the myotonic phenomenon in the activities of daily living, with a huge impact on their quality of life.

Under the leadership of Jes Olesen, Denmark, the European Brain Council (EBC) has developed a ‘cost of brain disease’ project in the last decade, which essentially became one of the most important databases for the development of European Research policy. In 2012 the costs for neurological disease alone were estimated to be 303 billion €/year and the costs for all brain diseases added up to 798 billion €/year, which is about 6 times the budget of the European Union.

For September 2017, we have selected: Hoffman EM, Watson JC, St Sauver J, Staff NP, Klein CJ. Association of long-term opioid therapy with functional status, adverse outcomes, and mortality among patients with polyneuropathy. JAMA Neurology 2017;74:773-779. Neuropathic pain is a common symptom in polyneuropathy that can be difficult to manage. Opioids are usually recommended as second-line treatment, with primary care physicians being mainly involved in opioid prescription.

David B. Vodušek (DBV): Can you tell us about your training and how you ended up looking after neurological patients with uro-neurological symptoms? David B. Vodušek (DBV): Can you tell us about your training and how you ended up looking after neurological patients with uro-neurological symptoms? Clare J Fowler (CJF): My early training included neurology at a junior level, but when it came to choosing a career path I was advised to pursue clinical neurophysiology, on the grounds that it could be a 'suitable' job for a woman with children. Furthermore, there was a UK shortage of consultant neurophysiologists.

or August 2017, we have selected: The Writing Group on behalf of the Edaravone (MCI-186) ALS 19 Study Group. Safety and efficacy of edaravone in well defined patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Lancet Neurol 2017;16:505-512. There is evidence that oxidative stress induced by free radicals is a key factor of progression in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

Memories from the 3rd EAN Congress in Amsterdam find yourself, a colleague or a friend in the Amsterdam photo-gallery        Amsterdam 2017: Memories from the 3rd EAN Congress – view the photo gallery was last modified: July 31st,… Continue Reading

the understanding or treatment of MS. David B. Vodušek (DBV): Can you tell us about your training and how you ended up looking after neurological patients with MS and pursuing research in MS? Per Soelberg Sorensen (PSS): When I was a young doctor, I was fascinated by neurology because of the way the neurologist would deduct where the lesion in the nervous system was located based on the history and objective examination. This was before the appearance of scanners.