Disorders of Movement: Diagnosis and Treatment

Disorders of movement are the clinical conditions characterized by insufficient voluntary and involuntary movements or excess of movement. These are conventionally divided into hyperkinetic and hypokinetic movement disorders. Hyperkinetic movement disorders refer to dyskinesia, or repetitive, excessive involuntary movements, which intrude with the normal flow of motor activity. Some of such disorders are dystonia, spasmodic torticollis, blepharospasm, myoclonus, etc. Hypokinetic movement disorders may refer to hypokinesia, akinesia, bradykinesia and rigidity. Examples include primary or idiopathic parkinsonism, striatonigral degeneration, Hallevorden-Spatz disease, etc. The first step in the management of such disorders is making a differential diagnosis of the disorder and then confirming the diagnosis through metabolic screening, CSF examinations and neurophysiological and pharmacological tests. Treatment of each disorder is different and depends on the diagnosis. The objective of this book is to give a general view of the different disorders of movement along with their diagnoses. It elucidates the concepts and innovative models around prospective developments with respect to the management of movement disorders. Those in search of information to further their knowledge will be greatly assisted by this book.