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Neurology a Leading Clinical Discipline
for Effective Care to Patients
"Neurology has shed
its old image of therapeutic nihilism and emerged as a leading clinical
discipline that provides effective care to patients with neurological
conditions like stroke, epilepsy and Parkinson's disease." This was stated
by Dr. Shahid Masud Baig, Chief of Neurology at Aga Khan University
Hospital (AKUH), as he welcomed participants to a two-day scientific conference
entitled "Neurology in the 21st Century."
The highlight of the
conference was a session of plenary lectures delivered by speakers visiting
from North America. Prof. Teepu Siddique, Professor of Neurology at Northwestern
University in Chicago, and world-renowned for research in neurogenetics,
presented a thought-provoking treatment of the molecular revolution under
way in neurology. Against the background of the Human Genome Project,
Prof. Siddique discussed the discovery of several new genes that are responsible
for producing neurological diseases through mutations. These discoveries
are helping neurologists understand the biology of many complex diseases
like Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease and motor neuron disease
that have hitherto been utterly mysterious.
In another plenary lecture,
Prof. Ashfaq Shuaib, Chairman of Neurology at University of Alberta in
Canada, elaborated on recent advances in the diagnosis and treatment of
stroke. Prof. Shuaib, who is internationally recognized for his many contributions
to the field of stroke neurology, reviewed the latest clinical trials
that are revolutionizing stroke care through identification of effective
medicines with good side-effect profiles.
Prominent members of
the local Neurology and Neurosurgery community also delivered update lectures
at the conference. Dr. Sarwar Siddiqui, Consultant Neurologist at Dow
Medical College and Civil Hospital, spoke on "New Frontiers in Epilepsy";
Dr. Imran Wahedna, Consultant Neurologist at AKUH, spoke on "Recent Advances
in Parkinson's Disease"; and Prof. Rashid Jooma, Chairman of Neurosurgery
at Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre, spoke on "Functional Neurosurgery:
The Interface of Neurology and Neurosurgery."
The conference concluded
with a presentation by Dr. S. Shiraz Hyder, Chief of Neurology at Liaquat
National Hospital, Karachi, on the training of neurologists. Dr. Hyder
said that "there are at present only 30 trained neurologists in Pakistan,
whereas based on our population demographics, the need is for at least
300 such specialists." He stressed the need for proper, structured neurology
residency training programmes along the lines of the residency programme
currently in place at AKUH.
In his summarizing remarks,
Dr. Saad Shafqat, Consultant Neurologist and organizing secretary of the
conference, thanked the participants and speakers and said that the conference
had provided an ideal forum to bring together neurologists in Pakistan
with internationally recognized Pakistani-origin neurologists practicing
in the developed world. He said that AKU had decided to make this neurology
meeting an annual event.
Earlier in the conference,
Dr. Shafqat also delivered a talk on "Dementia - a clinical update" and
Dr. Shahid Baig spoke on "Advances in Neuro-immunology."
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