Neurology

What is neurology?

Neurology is the branch of medicine that is concerned with the study and treatment of disorders of the nervous system.

Who is the neurologist?

The physician who specializes in neurology is called a neurologist. After completing medical school, physicians specializing in adult neurology complete one year of residency in internal medicine and three years of neurology residency.

Neurologists treat disorders of the brain, spinal cord, and nerves, including, but not limited to, the following:

• Muscle disorders and pain

• Headache

• Epilepsy

• Neuritis

• Brain and spinal cord tumors

• Multiple sclerosis

• Parkinson's disease

• Stroke

• Myasthenia gravis

• Muscular dystrophy

As a specialist, the neurologist sees patients with a wide range of problems and may act as a patient's principal or consulting physician, while the family physician, or primary care physician, is generally in charge of a patient's total healthcare.