Executive Page

The neurological examination has grown with our profession over the past 150 years. Neither the examination as a whole nor its individual parts have been subjected to the sort of rigorous evaluation which would command an instant Level A recommendation from an EFNS guideline panel. Nevertheless as a Good Practice Point the examination commands the leading position in the list of neurological investigations. Last year Johnston and Hauser, editors of the Annals of Neurology (volume 70, A10), called for research into the value of the different aspects of the “ethereal” neurological examination. The call was hotly debated in subsequent correspondence as being either overdue on the one hand or unnecessary and inappropriate on the other.

Authors and academics are in revolt against the tyranny of the giant publishing houses. There is a swing towards the growing numbers of free on line journals. Which side should the EFNS join in this rebellion?

The work done by the European Board of Neurology (EBN) is impressive and the EFNS is very grateful. If the EBN did not exist the EFNS would have had to invent it and do the work ourselves. As it is we enjoy an intimate relationship with EBN. Two members of the EFNS sit on the EBN, Dr Marianne de Visser and Dr David Vodušek, and we have invited the President of the EBN to attend and speak to the Council of the EFNS in September in Stockholm. Clearly the training of our neurologists is of the utmost importance to European neurology. The care with which the EBN revised Chapter 6 of its educational charter incorporating the neurology training curriculum deserves our applause and thanks.

Research agenda. The European Brain Council have updated their 2006 consensus document on brain research (Di Luca,M. et al. 2011 Consensus document on European brain research. Eur. J. Neurosci. 33, 768-818). In a 50 page paper covering 43 topics Monica Di Luca and colleagues, including Past EFNS President Jes Olesen, have focused on seven fields:

This is the first page of a monthly series. A President needs a strong team. We have an excellent Management Committee and dedicated office staff. In addition to ad hoc email communication and occasional teleconferences we meet twice a year - once at our annual congress and once at our Head Office in Vienna. We held our spring meeting on Saturday March 3rd in Vienna when a long agenda kept us out of the spring sunshine. The agenda covered the activities of each of our liaison, training and education and scientific committees, finance and future plans. The following are of special interest: