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INTRODUCTION to Current Science Reviews INDEX (rev. January 2001) I have posted a "CURRENT SCIENCE REVIEWS" message every month for about 6 years. A separate cumulative INDEX to the CSRs is revised each month, too big (now about 29 pages) for regular posting, but available on individual request. The object at first was merely a private file where I could retrieve passing items which otherwise would be lost in the passing torrent of published information about PD, but it turned out to interest others, hence this intro: For newcomers to the PIE, I need to tell you what the CSR is, and what it's not: As a new PD patient I wanted to learn all I could about the disease, especially the progress of research that might lead to improved treatment. I joined a local support group, who wanted a science input for their newsletter. While not a medical professional, I had access to a small medical library, where I could regularly scan a few of the more relevant journals, and translate their scientific jargon into English. So I started the monthly CSR, with these rules in mind: -Stick generally to peer-reviewed articles, for authenticity. -Avoid judgement, selection, or analysis, just list what turns up. -Respect copyright restrictions. I don't retain an article unless it is likely to have some historical significance. CSR items describe current work which may or may NOT prove to be important. Each one is just a piece of the big PD jigsaw puzzle; What's more, I scan only those few relevant journals available in the small medical library that I patronize, so the CSR is NOT a good source for basic or comprehensive info about PD. It is NOT a good reference for archival material; there are big sophisticated services, such as Medline, which do that. What the CSR does do is provide an inkling of where we are, what lies ahead. I started it for my own use, but of course I'm glad to share it with others of like inclination. Likewise, the CSR INDEX is not encyclopedic, but merely a clue to locate any particular item. You can look it up in the CSR of the date given, to see if you want to order the source article from your local library. Or, you can go direct to the source as cited. Despite its very limited scope, I have kept on with the CSRs because it's so handy. Looking at the world through a PC screen is like looking through a keyhole- no matter how fast, you see only one thing at a time. On paper, it's more like a dictionary, where you can compare several things at once. For example, in the recent thread about olanzapine, I found my 5 entries in less time than my PC takes to warm up. I can fill e-mail requests for individual reviews, as cited in the cumulative subject Index, but remember that these are only reference citations. To see an actual article or abstract, you must use either Medline or a medical library that subscribes to the journal in question. The cited articles are from professional journals usually kept on file in medical libraries. The journal names are abbreviated, so that each citation will fit on one line, but the librarian should be able to decipher. University libraries generally are open, short of borrowing privilege, to the public. If you need only an abstract, many are available from the U.S. government PubMed website at http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov. To decide quickly whether to go that far, you can look up my very brief review in the Current Science Reviews for the month indicated (back to 1995), which are in the archives of this forum as well as in my own files. Cheers, Joe -- J. R. Bruman (818) 789-3694 3527 Cody Road Sherman Oaks, CA 91403-5013