Tropical Neurology

This issue of Seminars in Neurology on tropical neurology came together through the efforts of Drs. Alfredo Lopez and Jose Biller. The neurological disorders discussed in this issue are certainly not unique to the tropics and are increasingly seen worldwide. We thought our readers might enjoy learning about them from the experts in the field.

Neurocysticercosis is reviewed by Dr. Oscar Del Brutto. Dr. Melanie Walker and Dr. Joseph Zunt review the neuroparasitic infections due to nematodes, cestodes, trematodes, and protozoans. For a long time neurocysticercosis and parasitic infections have been a major public health problem in developing countries, but in the last several years they are increasingly seen in industrialized nations. Familiarity with the diagnosis and treatment of these infectious diseases is essential knowledge for every neurologist. Dr. Michael Watters reviews the clinical presentation, diagnosis, and treatment of marine neurotoxin poisoning. Drs. Joao Gomes and Julio Chalela review stroke in the tropics and emphasize the unusual stroke mechanisms that are more prevalent in the tropics, including stroke due to sickle cell disease, stroke due to arteritis secondary to cysticercosis, cardioembolism due to Chagas' disease, intraparenchymal and subarachnoid hemorrhages due to leptospirosis, and cerebral infarctions and intracranial hemorrhages due to malaria. Drs. Michael Schneck and José Biller review the etiologies of hemorrhagic stroke in the tropics. Dr. Roy Sucholeiki reviews heatstroke. Although heatstroke would be a more common disorder in unacclimated travelers going to warm climates, exertional heatstroke occurs in the setting of strenuous exercise in environments that are nontropical. Drs. Gregory Gruener and Paul Grindstaff review the peripheral nervous system complications of the human T-cell lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1) myelopathy syndromes. HTLV-1 and its associated neurological disorders are increasingly seen worldwide.

We are terribly grateful to Drs. Lopez and Biller for making this issue of Seminars in Neurology possible and are also terribly grateful to all of the contributors to this issue for educating us about the neurological disorders that, while common to the tropics, have now spread well beyond these areas of the world.