The hypothalamus is an anatomically small but functionally important part of the brain. In functional and pathophysiological terms, the hypothalamus represents the intersection of several areas of clinical and medical expertise. The human hypothalamus can be astutely referred to as the crossroad of endocrinology, psychiatry, neurology and neurosurgery. Because of its involvement in myriad physiologic functions and the varied ways disorders involving it can manifest, hypothalamic disease can initially come to medical attention in widely disparate settings and with widely different clinicians. Therefore, the detection and proper care of hypothalamic dysfunction and disease often requires carefully coordinated multidisciplinary care. This volume fills a significant void in the medical professional community, comprehensively presenting the scope of hypothalamic structure, function, dysfunction and disease to cater to the various clinical, teaching and research professionals that have a stake in this part of the human brain. This text captures in one place all the information that practicing clinicians, clinician scientists, and researchers need to be adequately informed about various aspects of the hypothalamus in all its complexity. It is comprehensive and broad in scope so that it provides relevant reference information for the wide range of professionals involved in the pre- and post-mortem detection, diagnosis, characterization, care and management of various hypothalamic disorders and diseases in addition to providing a sound anatomic and physiologic foundation of the normal human hypothalamus. The Human Hypothalamus can be used to differing degrees by medical professionals and students alike, finding utility for interested general clinicians, medical school and allied health professional teaching faculty as well as subspecialists in domains as wide as neurosurgery, neuroendocrinology, clinical psychiatry and neuro-oncology.

The human hypothalamus, a small structure at the base of the brain, has strategic importance for the harmonic function of the human body. It controls the autonomic nervous system, neuroendocrine function, circadian and circannual rhythms, somatic activities, and behavior, and is situated at the borders between the brain and the body and the brain and the soul, meeting points for mind and body. The hypothalamus is involved in a wide range of higher mental functions, including attention, learning and reinforcement of mnemonic processes, emotional control, mood stability, and cognitive-emotional interactions. It also has a role to play in behavioral disorders, panic reactions, cluster headache, gelastic epilepsy, mental deficiency, periodic disorders, depression, autism, and schizophrenia, and in a substantial number of neurodegenerative diseases. It enlarges greatly the dimensions of the hypothalamic contribution in controlling psychosomatic equilibrium and retaining internal unity of the human existence.

The hypothalamus is a particularly complex part of the brain; it represents only a fragment of the brain volume and yet it is considered as one the most important regions involved in maintaining homeostasis and in the resulting survival of the individual. Since most of the experimental data in the scientific literature are based on animal studies, there is an emerging need for a volume that provides a review of the current research and knowledge of the major hypothalamic functions in humans. This book is intended to tackle these functions and the ensuing morphological and pathological aspects in order to give the reader a cross section of the most recent data and major trends in the current hypothalamic research in a convenient, compact format.

The Human Hypothalamus: Neuroendocrine Disorders, Volume 181 in the Handbook of Clinical Neurology series, provides comprehensive summaries of recent research on the brain and nervous system as they relate to clinical neurology. This volume summarizes the role of the hypothalamus in neuroendocrine disorders, identifying the mechanism of action, disorder etiology, and best practices for assessment and treatment. Disorders covered include pituitary hypothalamic disorders of development and growth, hypothalamic tumor related disorders, hypothalamic autoimmune disorders and infection, disorders of vasopressin, water and sodium homeostasis, eating disorders, and gonadotropic hormone regulation disorders. - Discusses the importance of the hypothalamus in human growth and development - Reviews hypothalamic related tumors, as well as pituitary, autoimmune, vasopressin and hormone regulation disorders - Includes metabolic and eating disorders - Identifies mechanisms of disease action and etiology - Provides best practice information for assessment and treatment

As the editor, I feel extremely happy to present to the readers such a rich collection of chapters authored/co-authored by a large number of experts from around the world covering the broad field of guided wave optics and optoelectronics. Most of the chapters are state-of-the-art on respective topics or areas that are emerging. Several authors narrated technological challenges in a lucid manner, which was possible because of individual expertise of the authors in their own subject specialties. I have no doubt that this book will be useful to graduate students, teachers, researchers, and practicing engineers and technologists and that they would love to have it on their book shelves for ready reference at any time.

This volume provides concise and comprehensive information on neuromuscular disorders, including rapid advancements in the understanding of the neurobiology of neuromuscular transmission. In addition, clinicians will find timely discussions on the various forms of these disorders that have been discovered due to increased study within the field. New observations into the immunopathogenesis of myasthenia gravis, and the molecular mechanisms underlying the links between activity and patterns of gene expression, particularly in muscle, are also explored, along with novel information on the understanding of the pathophysiology of the heterogeneous group of peripheral nerve hyperexcitability syndromes. Each of these valuable insights, and their accompanying explanations, provides a framework on which new therapeutic strategies can be built to aid in the enhancement and restoration of normal function in neuromuscular junction disorders.

Stress and Health: Biological and Psychological Interactions is a brief and accessible examination of psychological stress and its psychophysiological relationships with cognition, emotions, brain functions, and the peripheral mechanisms by which the body is regulated. Updated throughout, the Third Edition covers two new and significant areas of emerging research: how our early life experiences alter key stress responsive systems at the level of gene expression; and what large, normal, and small stress responses may mean for our overall health and well-being.

New edition building on the success of previous one. Retains core aim of providing an accessible introduction to behavioral neuroanatomy.

This pathophysiology text offers a unique conceptual approach that facilitates learning by viewing pathophysiology as health care professionals do. Students will learn about general mechanisms of disease or alterations in human function—such as immune alterations or altered nutrition—and apply these processes to specific conditions. Chapters focus on fifteen core concepts of altered human function, selected by analyzing and clustering health conditions with high prevalence, incidence, and severity. Unlike a traditional systems-based approach, this novel approach shows how most diseases involve multiple body systems. A bound-in CD-ROM includes animations and an interactive game. Faculty resources include lesson plans, PowerPoint slides, additional case studies, and student assignment worksheets.

How hormonal signals in one small structure of the brain—the hypothalamus—govern our physiology and behavior. As human beings, we prefer to think of ourselves as reasonable. But how much of what we do is really governed by reason? In this book, Gareth Leng considers the extent to which one small structure of the neuroendocrine brain—the hypothalamus—influences what we do, how we love, and who we are. The hypothalamus contains a large variety of neurons. These communicate not only through neurotransmitters, but also through peptide signals that act as hormones within the brain. While neurotransmitter signals tend to be ephemeral and confined by anatomical connectivity, the hormone signals that hypothalamic neurons generate are potent, wide-reaching, and long-lasting. Leng explores the evolutionary origins of these remarkable neurons, and where the receptors for their hormone signals are found in the brain. By asking how the hypothalamic neurons and their receptors are regulated, he explores how the hypothalamus links our passions with our reason. The Heart of the Brain shows in an accessible way how this very small structure is very much at the heart of what makes us human.