Neurology India – Case Reports – A Beginning

When you read you begin with A,B,C, when you sing you begin with Do. Re, Me, when you write in the medical profession you generally begin with a case report. This 1000 or 1500 word document kicks off your academic career and lays the foundation for what could be a lifelong passion for writing. Writing, the art of communicating thoughts to the mind through the eye, is the great invention of the world.enabling us to converse with the dead, the absent and the unborn at all distances of time and space – Abraham Lincoln Medical writing can be traced back to ancient civilization. The Sushruta Samhita and the Charaka Samhita, the foundational texts of Ayurveda the Indian traditional form of medicine, the Hippocratic corpus from ancient Greece, the Edwin Smith Papyrus an ancient Egyptian surgical textbook and many others have vividly described anatomical details, principles of diagnosis and treatment, and surgical procedures that form the basis of modern medicine. These treatises documented medical practice and served as educational tools and helped in disseminating knowledge across all times and continents. This probably set the stage for medical journalism. Modern medical writing took a radical turn in the 19th century with the establishment of the first medical journals. The word “journal” derives its origin from the French word journal meaning daily. The word has been widely adopted by academia and it refers to an erudite publication which expresses the opinions and experiences of researchers, scholars, and experts in a particular field. It is also a medium which paves the way for expression of new thoughts, ideas, and innovations which are then mulled over, examined and deliberated by the general fraternity before being accepted by the profession at large. The art of writing is the art of discovering what you believe – Gustav Flaubert Medical writing involves an amalgamation of knowledge, understanding, creativity, technical skill, discipline, and practice. Scientific publications are a result of advanced clinical thought process articulated in words. More than an art of writing or a command over the English language, it is the will of a neuroscientist to go beyond a line and get on to the next level in the widely open academic field. A good scientific publication has the power to direct and change the existing thought and can contribute to the growth of the subject. The status of a neuroscientist in the academic eyes is assessed by the quality of his publication. The citation of the article by other authors is a reliable parameter to gauze the strengths and contributory effects and the acknowledgment received by his publication. An academic journal is a platform of free and novel thoughts and expression which may have the capacity of changing current practice. In such a democracy of intellect (Jacob Bronovisky’s phrase), no one is superior or inferior, wise or otherwise, but one and all are co-travellers in the search of clinical clarity, investigative efficiency, operative competence, and fiscal wisdom. As neuroscientists, we often come across rare clinical scenarios, develop interesting and unique ways to deal with a daunting clinical situation or learn when things go awry. These experiences from the soul of a case report. Putting this on paper or digitally clarifies our thinking, creates a line of thought which can be examined thus attaining a better perspective. Writing makes us a contributing and creative member of the neurosurgical academy. In an academic world where case reports are often difficult to publish, Neurology India – Case Reports promises to be the hub for accumulating world experiences of unique, challenging cases, and innovative ways of handling both simple and complex clinical scenarios. The journal aims to be encouraging to young associates to pen down their ideas and experiences and to attract the wisdom of renowned experts to share their insights. I welcome you all neuroscientists to contribute to Neurology India Case Reports. Let our journey begin.