Creasy JL. Dating Neurological Injury: A Forensic Guide for Radiologists, Other Expert Medical Witnesses, and Attorneys. Springer 2010, 126 pages, 252 illustrations, $189.00.
Dr. Creasy came up with an interesting idea when he conceptualized this short 121-page book Dating Neurological Injury: A Forensic Guide for Radiologists, Other Expert Medical Witnesses, and Attorneys. The book addresses brain injury but leaves out questions that often arise when looking at signal changes in the spinal cord. Nonetheless, there is value in this book predominately for radiologists who have questions about the timing of certain MR and CT findings in brain injury (not restricted to trauma, but any type of injury) and to lawyers who are involved in personal injury or medical liability. While one may retreat from endorsing a book which makes an attorney smarter, I guess it is better to deal with a knowledgeable lawyer than one who is clueless.
Virtually all the information in this book is known (should be known) to all neuroradiologists; nonetheless, it is welcome to see the book organized in the manner it is. The first chapter is a 41-page very general summary of brain anatomy and the imaging features of the parenchymal and vessels. The next chapter gives the bare tones of how a CT, MR, or US image is generated in addition to an overview of the appearance of blood and edema using those 3 modalities. A chapter on the use of contrast material in CT and MR is short and is accentuated by 8 “principles” of contrast use; these are quite elementary statements but are probably useful for the audience (non-neuroradiologists) to whom the book is directed. In subsequent chapters the MR and CT changes of hemorrhage over time are simply explained as are the alterations in brain tissue in ischemia. The final 3 chapters state in principle and rule form what one can say in a medical legal setting, what can/cannot be determined on the images and why there are uncertainties in dating neurological events based on what is seen on the CT and MR images.
This book serves a useful purpose for those who want the rudimentary information in imaging of injured (trauma or otherwise) brain parenchyma.
