,How Proust Can Improve Your Practice in Epileptology Bertrand de Toffol, Pierre Genton,Editors,...
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Book Review How Proust Can Improve Your Practice in Epileptology, Bertrand de Toffol, Pierre Genton (Eds.), John Libbey Eurotext, Montrouge/ Esher, 2008, Soft cover, 232 pp, ISBN: 978-2-7420-0711-0 Epilepsy books rarely make light reading. Nevertheless, this interesting volume is just that. The authors interviewed 25 famous minds in modern epileptology, and asked for their personal opinions on important professional questions such as: • Is the present definition of epileptic syndromes satisfactory? How can it be improved? • Which elements of history taking and examination are most relevant for diagnosis? • What are the most important aspects of the use of the EEG? • How do you define severe epilepsy? • How do you define benign epilepsy? • Which is the major progress to be expected? • Who is the greatest epileptologist of all times, and why? • What master(s) had the greatest influence on you? • What is the best treatise on epileptology? • Person with whom you would like to co-preside an international epilepsy congress and why? • Your favorite famous person with epilepsy, and why? • Your main professional concerns about epileptology and patients with epilepsy? • What is the highlight of your career? • Which of your publications would you rate highest? • Anything you would have liked to demonstrate but did not succeed? • Anything you found without looking for it? • Something important you were taught that proved to be completely false? • Which is the best way to train young epileptologists? Some questions are anecdotal, fun, and intriguing, eliciting a response that projects the idiosyncratic personality of the interview- ee. Other questions probe fundamental problems, concerning issues still unresolved in epileptology, where the opinions of the experi- enced interviewees are doubly precious. The result is a series of sincere answers to rather controversial questions intermixed with anecdotes, commentaries, challenges, and, at times, humorous remarks. In choosing reputable and highly respected senior epileptologists, positioned “beyond good and evil,” the authors succeed in obtaining honest responses beyond the hidden censorship of political correctness. Indeed, reading between the lines, one can get a feel for the interviewees’ satisfaction, pride, achieve- ments, regrets, frustrations, and rivalries. However, the content of their answers is per se most interesting, so much so that the book takes us through some of the most pressing, unresolved issues in modern epileptology. Perhaps the most controversial question is that of classification, which is so fundamental to clinical practice, communication, and conceptualization of the disease. Most agree that identification of syndromes is a great achievement of modern epileptology. All praise the shrewdness of those who have successfully identified specific syndromes. That said, there is a general consensus that the present classification(s) is not entirely satisfactory, but the way forward appears uncertain, with some holding clearly skeptical views: “It is unclear why issues of definition and classification arouse such passions in the breast of international epileptologists, but it may take a reincarnation of King Solomon to achieve anything more than reluctant compromise.” Another long-standing issue in epileptology is the use and interpretation of the EEG. Most agree that the EEG is essential for patient assessment, but the specific aspects of its interpretation are less clear, particularly for interictal recordings. The majority emphasize the need to interpret the EEG within the context of detailed clinical history. Most interviewees expect that the major future progress in epileptology will derive from genetics and molecular biology. Notwithstanding, one rightly pointed out that any major progress will, by nature, be unpredictable. Perhaps, as expected, only a few contestants were named the best epileptologist of all time. Most interviewees chose Hippocrates, Jackson, Gowers, Gastaut, Lennox, or Penfield, or a combination of them. Gastaut, Lennox, Penfield, and Roger clearly created epileptology schools of high international standing, as they were the most commonly named masters who influenced the interviewees. Again, their comments create a window into the personalities of these masters for those of us who unfortunately were not able to meet them. The two favorite famous people with epilepsy seem to be Dostoevsky, followed by Julius Caesar. The latter turned out to be a military genius who, paradoxically, would not be allowed to join the army today. It is unclear whether this may be due to present prejudices or to a more refined diagnosis. The question 'Person with whom would you like to co-preside an international epilepsy congress?' would have been more informative if asked in the negative! Still, some answers were revealing: “Nicole Kidman; first because it would give epilepsy the level of publicity we always find missing, and then in that case, she could not reasonably deny me a kiss.” Beyond the romantic touch, the answer emphasizes that public awareness of epilepsy needs to be widened, to the same degree that awareness of Alzheimer's has risen over the last few years. Few interviewees named this as their main professional concern in epileptology, which perhaps shows the rather narrow aims of our professional goals. The comments on professional achievement (answers to Anything you would have liked to demonstrate but did not succeed? Anything you found without looking for it? Something important you were taught that proved to be completely false?) are particularly interesting. Not only do they illustrate the professional trajectory of the interviewee but, more importantly, they often describe situations with which we could all identify, demonstrating that some of our present concerns may not necessarily be new, unique, or insurmountable. I particularly enjoyed Talairach's description of how he thought of the bicommissural line as a Epilepsy and Behavior 18 (2010) 134–135 doi:10.1016/j.yebeh.2010.03.014 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Epilepsy and Behavior journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/yebeh
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Transcript of ,How Proust Can Improve Your Practice in Epileptology Bertrand de Toffol, Pierre Genton,Editors,...
Epilepsy and Behavior 18 (2010) 134–135
Contents lists available at ScienceDirect
Epilepsy and Behavior
j ourna l homepage: www.e lsev ie r.com/ locate /yebeh
Book Review
How Proust Can Improve Your Practice in Epileptology, Bertrandde Toffol, Pierre Genton (Eds.), John Libbey Eurotext, Montrouge/Esher, 2008, Soft cover, 232 pp, ISBN: 978-2-7420-0711-0
Epilepsy books rarely make light reading. Nevertheless, thisinteresting volume is just that. The authors interviewed 25 famousminds in modern epileptology, and asked for their personal opinionson important professional questions such as:
• Is the present definition of epileptic syndromes satisfactory? Howcan it be improved?
• Which elements of history taking and examination are mostrelevant for diagnosis?
• What are the most important aspects of the use of the EEG?• How do you define severe epilepsy?• How do you define benign epilepsy?• Which is the major progress to be expected?• Who is the greatest epileptologist of all times, and why?• What master(s) had the greatest influence on you?• What is the best treatise on epileptology?• Person with whom you would like to co-preside an internationalepilepsy congress and why?
• Your favorite famous person with epilepsy, and why?• Your main professional concerns about epileptology and patientswith epilepsy?
• What is the highlight of your career?• Which of your publications would you rate highest?• Anything youwould have liked to demonstrate but did not succeed?• Anything you found without looking for it?• Something important you were taught that proved to be completelyfalse?
• Which is the best way to train young epileptologists?
Some questions are anecdotal, fun, and intriguing, eliciting aresponse that projects the idiosyncratic personality of the interview-ee. Other questions probe fundamental problems, concerning issuesstill unresolved in epileptology, where the opinions of the experi-enced interviewees are doubly precious.
The result is a series of sincere answers to rather controversialquestions intermixed with anecdotes, commentaries, challenges, and,at times, humorous remarks. In choosing reputable and highlyrespected senior epileptologists, positioned “beyond good and evil,”the authors succeed in obtaining honest responses beyond the hiddencensorship of political correctness. Indeed, reading between the lines,one can get a feel for the interviewees’ satisfaction, pride, achieve-ments, regrets, frustrations, and rivalries. However, the content oftheir answers is per se most interesting, so much so that the booktakes us through some of the most pressing, unresolved issues inmodern epileptology.
Perhaps the most controversial question is that of classification,which is so fundamental to clinical practice, communication, andconceptualization of the disease. Most agree that identification of
doi:10.1016/j.yebeh.2010.03.014
syndromes is a great achievement of modern epileptology. All praisethe shrewdness of those who have successfully identified specificsyndromes. That said, there is a general consensus that the presentclassification(s) is not entirely satisfactory, but the way forwardappears uncertain, with some holding clearly skeptical views: “It isunclear why issues of definition and classification arouse suchpassions in the breast of international epileptologists, but it maytake a reincarnation of King Solomon to achieve anything more thanreluctant compromise.”
Another long-standing issue in epileptology is the use andinterpretation of the EEG. Most agree that the EEG is essential forpatient assessment, but the specific aspects of its interpretation are lessclear, particularly for interictal recordings. The majority emphasize theneed to interpret the EEGwithin the context of detailed clinical history.
Most interviewees expect that the major future progress inepileptology will derive from genetics and molecular biology.Notwithstanding, one rightly pointed out that any major progresswill, by nature, be unpredictable.
Perhaps, as expected, only a few contestants were named the bestepileptologist of all time.Most interviewees choseHippocrates, Jackson,Gowers, Gastaut, Lennox, or Penfield, or a combination of them.
Gastaut, Lennox, Penfield, and Roger clearly created epileptologyschools of high international standing, as they were the mostcommonly named masters who influenced the interviewees. Again,their comments create a window into the personalities of thesemasters for those of us who unfortunately were not able to meetthem.
The two favorite famous people with epilepsy seem to beDostoevsky, followed by Julius Caesar. The latter turned out to be amilitary genius who, paradoxically, would not be allowed to join thearmy today. It is unclear whether this may be due to presentprejudices or to a more refined diagnosis.
The question 'Person with whom would you like to co-preside aninternational epilepsy congress?' would have been more informativeif asked in the negative! Still, some answers were revealing: “NicoleKidman; first because it would give epilepsy the level of publicity wealways find missing, and then in that case, she could not reasonablydeny me a kiss.” Beyond the romantic touch, the answer emphasizesthat public awareness of epilepsy needs to be widened, to the samedegree that awareness of Alzheimer's has risen over the last few years.Few interviewees named this as their main professional concern inepileptology, which perhaps shows the rather narrow aims of ourprofessional goals.
The comments on professional achievement (answers to Anythingyouwouldhave liked todemonstratebut didnot succeed?Anythingyoufound without looking for it? Something important you were taughtthat proved to be completely false?) are particularly interesting. Notonly do they illustrate the professional trajectory of the interviewee but,more importantly, they often describe situations with which we couldall identify, demonstrating that some of our present concerns may notnecessarily be new, unique, or insurmountable. I particularly enjoyedTalairach's description of how he thought of the bicommissural line as a
135Book Review
coordinate baseline for neurosurgery, under an olive tree in Corsica, astory akin to the mythical anecdote of Newton and the apple.
It can fairly be said that this precious book is a compilation ofseasoned wise opinions and advice, intermixed with tongue-in-cheekcomments and anecdotes,whichprovide an insight into the evolution ofepileptology during the 20th century. It has the potential to become aclassic on the history of epilepsy because of the collection of academicand personal information that would have otherwise been lost.
Nevertheless, this volume did fall short in one respect. Aftercarefully reading the 222 pages of this thoroughly enjoyable book, I
still do not know how Proust can improvemy practice of epileptology.Not that it matters!
Gonzalo AlarconInstitute of Psychiatry and King's College Hospital, London, UK
E-mail address: [email protected].
22 March 2010
![arXiv:1711.09886v2 [cs.MS] 22 Mar 2018 · E ciently and easily integrating di erential equations with JiTCODE, JiTCDDE, and JiTCSDE Gerrit Ansmann1,2,3 1)Department of Epileptology,](https://static.fdocuments.net/doc/165x107/5e87466f29b81279fb74b974/arxiv171109886v2-csms-22-mar-2018-e-ciently-and-easily-integrating-di-erential.jpg)
