Neurology is a specialized branch of medicine that deals with the diagnosis and treatment of organic diseases affecting the central and peripheral nervous system. The organic structures associated with neurology include the brain, spinal cord, and the peripheral nervous system (nerves that connect to muscles, skin, and sensory organs).

The nervous system enables communication between different parts of the body and coordinates both voluntary and involuntary functions. In particular, the brain and spinal cord integrate information from other organs and from the external environment and plan appropriate responses. Different brain structures, each involved in specific functions, are responsible for thinking, memory, reasoning, understanding, language, voluntary and involuntary movements, balance, posture, breathing, heartbeat, blood pressure, temperature regulation, emotions, the body’s internal biological clock, and the processing of sensory information, such as vision and hearing.

Conditions treated by a neurologist:

• Brain and spinal cord: stroke (cerebral infarction), dementia including Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis, migraine and other types of headaches, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS);
• Spine: herniated discs, spondylosis;
• Peripheral nerves: plexopathies, peripheral neuropathies;
• Muscles: myopathies, muscular dystrophies, myasthenia gravis.