Reviewer: Sean Bryant, MD (University of Colorado Health Sciences Center)
Description: Literature is reviewed about current brain imaging modalities and their integration to study substance abuse. Use of these techniques in a legal context is also addressed.
Purpose: The purpose is to provide a nexus on substance abuse brain imaging for a diverse audience. It is the author's hope that an increased understanding of the deleterious effects of substance abuse on the brain will be fostered by integration of these techniques. The text addresses a focused but provocative subject that is useful for a selected audience.
Audience: This book is directed to a broad audience, including clinical researchers, physicians, forensic experts, and lawyers. The format and information is most applicable to neuroscience researchers and subspecialists investigating substance abuse. The author is an expert in the field, with an appointment from Harvard medical school.
Features: A brief technical foundation, as well as the utility of current, relevant imaging modalities (electro-encephalography, PET, SPECT, and MRI), is explained. A section is dedicated to the relationship of neuroimaging findings to behavior in substance abuse patients. An intriguing chapter discusses the legal context of using these techniques in court. The exhaustive bibliography on substance abuse research is provided as a reference, useful for future clinical investigation. Listing of the figures and tables as a separate table of contents is helpful. The glossary is appropriate for the audience and essential to comprehending the material.
Assessment: This is a robust text for the investigation of neuroimaging applications in substance abuse research. Explanation of the basic technical details for mainstream neuroimaging modalities are clearly written. Use as a didactic reference for clinicians or laypersons is limited.
Reviewer: Sean Bryant, MD(University of Colorado Health Sciences Center)
Description: Literature is reviewed about current brain imaging modalities and their integration to study substance abuse. Use of these techniques in a legal context is also addressed.
Purpose: The purpose is to provide a nexus on substance abuse brain imaging for a diverse audience. It is the author's hope that an increased understanding of the deleterious effects of substance abuse on the brain will be fostered by integration of these techniques. The text addresses a focused but provocative subject that is useful for a selected audience.
Audience: This book is directed to a broad audience, including clinical researchers, physicians, forensic experts, and lawyers. The format and information is most applicable to neuroscience researchers and subspecialists investigating substance abuse. The author is an expert in the field, with an appointment from Harvard medical school.
Features: A brief technical foundation, as well as the utility of current, relevant imaging modalities (electro-encephalography, PET, SPECT, and MRI), is explained. A section is dedicated to the relationship of neuroimaging findings to behavior in substance abuse patients. An intriguing chapter discusses the legal context of using these techniques in court. The exhaustive bibliography on substance abuse research is provided as a reference, useful for future clinical investigation. Listing of the figures and tables as a separate table of contents is helpful. The glossary is appropriate for the audience and essential to comprehending the material.
Assessment: This is a robust text for the investigation of neuroimaging applications in substance abuse research. Explanation of the basic technical details for mainstream neuroimaging modalities are clearly written. Use as a didactic reference for clinicians or laypersons is limited.
Literature is reviewed about current brain imaging modalities and their integration to study substance abuse. Use of these techniques in a legal context is also addressed. The purpose is to provide a nexus on substance abuse brain imaging for a diverse audience. It is the author's hope that an increased understanding of the deleterious effects of substance abuse on the brain will be fostered by integration of these techniques. The text addresses a focused but provocative subject that is useful for a selected audience. This book is directed to a broad audience, including clinical researchers, physicians, forensic experts, and lawyers. The format and information is most applicable to neuroscience researchers and subspecialists investigating substance abuse. The author is an expert in the field, with an appointment from Harvard medical school. A brief technical foundation, as well as the utility of current, relevant imaging modalities (electro-encephalography, PET, SPECT, and MRI), is explained. A section is dedicated to the relationship of neuroimaging findings to behavior in substance abuse patients. An intriguing chapter discusses the legal context of using these techniques in court. The exhaustive bibliography on substance abuse research is provided as a reference, useful for future clinical investigation. Listing of the figures and tables as a separate table of contents is helpful. The glossary is appropriate for the audience and essential to comprehending the material. This is a robust text for the investigation of neuroimaging applications in substance abuse research. Explanation of the basic technical details for mainstream neuroimaging modalities are clearly written. Use as adidactic reference for clinicians or laypersons is limited.
In this text prepared for medical professionals as well as those in forensics and law, Kaufman (Harvard Medical School) has compiled studies on various aspects of the use of neuroimages for the study of substance abuse. The first six chapters provide the history and methods of electroencephalography, emission tomography, and magnetic resonance. Chapter seven describes neuropsychological assessment of the acute and chronic effects of eight abused substances<-->alcohol, marijuana, hallucinogens, benzodiazepines, opiates, cocaine, amphetamines and other stimulants, and solvents; and the final chapter discusses the use of neuroimages as legal evidence. The subject- arranged bibliography is extensive, occupying 130 pages. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
Foreword by Joseph Frascella, National Institute on Drug Abuse
"This book is directed to a broad audience, including clinical researchers, physicians, forensic experts, and lawyers. The format and information is most applicable to neuroscience researchers and subspecialists investigating substance abuse. The author is an expert in the field, with an appointment from Harvard medical school....A section is dedicated to the relationship of neuroimaging findings to behavior in substance abuse patients. An intriguing chapter discusses the legal context of using these techniques in court. The exhaustive bibliography on substance abuse research is provided as a reference, useful for future clinical investigation. ...The glossary is appropriate for the audience and essential to comprehending the material....This is a robust text for the investigation of neuroimaging applications in substance abuse research. Explanation of the basic technical details for mainstream neuroimaging modalities are clearly written."- Doody's Health Sciences Book Review Journal
"As the editor states in his preface, this book deals with all aspects of brain imaging in the study of substance abuse and dependence. ... The chapters are followed by a glossary and by an extensive bibliography ( 140 pages!) structured by technique and by substance abuse topic. The index of 25 pages is very detailed and at the same time easy to use. A list of the chosen figures (including 12 colour plates) and tables is included at the beginning of the book. ... This book is aimed at anyone interested in the neurosciences in substance abuse. I especially recommend this book to specialists in forensic medicine. Each library or department should certainly have this book on its shelf." - European Radiology
"This book provides a comprehensive review of the use of brain imaging techniques in the evaluation of brain changes associated with acute and chronic substance abuse." - Acta Radiologica
"As the editor states in his preface this books deals with all aspects of brain imaging in the study of substance abuse and dependence. Thirteen authors, most of them experienced psychiatrists, have contributed to the eight chapters...This book is aimed at anyone interested in the neurosciences in substance abuse. I especially recommend this book to specialists in forensic medicine. Each library or department should certainly have this book on its shelf." - European Radiology
