Gregory T. Carter, MD, MS, Consulting Editor

Here he brings us an issue that should really be a very “hands-on,” “user-friendly” text that I suspect will be found lying next to EMG machines in offices and labs of many physiatrists and neurologists as well. I can tell you it will be in my office. This text contains some of the best graphics I have ever seen in this area, making it easy to reference and use right in the lab. The anatomic diagrams really help define the physiology and make it easier to understand some of the more complex pathophysiology. In addition to diagrams, there are highlights of each diagnosis and excellent coverage of some of the more common diagnostic dilemmas one is likely to encounter when doing these studies. This makes the text easy to use quickly to reference. Yet the level of detail provided here also makes it an excellent text to study for board exams, and as an information source to cite in lectures.

All major topics are covered in-depth, including the electrodiagnosis of cervical and lumbar radiculopathy, brachial plexopathies, proximal upper extremity neuropathies and plexopathies, radial, ulnar, and median neuropathies, ulnar neuropathies, lumbosacral plexopathies, sciatic neuropathies, fibular (peroneal) neuropathies, motor neuron diseases, peripheral neuropathies, disorders of neuromuscular transmission, and myopathies, including myotonic disorders.

Among the authors Michael recruited for this project are some of the true masters in the field, including Zachary Simmons, MD, P. James “Jim” B. Dyck, MD, Jeremy Shefner, MD, Mark B. Bromberg, MD, PhD, James F. “Chip” Howard Jr, MD, Anthony “Tony” Amato, MD, William “Bill” Campbell, MD, MSHA, and Eric L. Logigian, MD. All of these authors are among the world’s foremost experts in the electrodiagnosis of neuromuscular diseases. It is an honor to have all of these authors here and I want to express my sincerest thanks to each and every one of these esteemed authors, all of whom dedicated much time and energy to bring us this issue of the Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Clinics of North America . I also, as always, want to thank our Elsevier editor, Jessica McCool, for her patience, dedication, and wisdom, which is crucial to bringing this all together.