Spinal Cord Monitoring: Basic Principles, Regeneration, Pathophysiology, and Clinical Aspects

During the last decades, research on spinal cord has attracted a great deal of attention because of problems such as sensory-motor and autonomic dysfunctions associated with traumatic and other injuries. Recording of spinal cord evoked potentials is one of the most promising approaches to understand the spinal cord function. However, the details of the evoked potentials and their significance in various pathological conditions are not yet fully characterized. This book summarizes new findings in the field of electrophysiology and relates this knowledge to pathology and regeneration research. It is the first one which deals in great detail with various ways to monitor spinal cord function in experimental and clinical situations. It provides an up-to-date knowledge regarding spinal cord bioelectrical activity and its modification with pharmacological agents and covers new aspects of regeneration studies, particularly the role of myelin associated inhibitory molecules. A section is devoted to clinical studies dealing with electrical activity, pathology, and current therapeutic measures. This volume will be useful both to basic and clinical neuroscientists engaged in the field of neurology, neurophysiology, neurochemistry, neurosurgery, neuropathology, and related disciplines in order to understand basic functions of the spinal cord and to stimulate further research in this rapidly advancing field.