Major Neurocognitive Disorders: A Clinical Neuropsychology Lecture Series (January – May, 2014)

Course by Elkhonon Goldberg, Ph.D., ABPP

This course is a lecture series covering a wide range of topics on major brain disorders affecting cognition. The course is intended for the professionals concerned with brain health and brain disorders: psychologists, neuropsychologists, psychiatrists, neurologists, cognitive neuroscientists, and other clinicians and researchers. Brain mechanisms and cognitive characteristics of several major disorders affecting cognition will be reviewed. While this is primarily a lecture sequence, the number of participants will be kept intentionally relatively small to enable active audience participation. The topics covered in this mental health seminar are listed below. They will be addressed in the course of five day-long lectures (8am-6pm with a lunch break), offered one day a month, January-May 2014.

1. Major dementias: Alzheimer’s type, Lewy body, Frontotemporal, cerebrovascular, Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI). Their neurobiology, natural history, cognitive profiles and variants. Diagnostic and differential diagnosis issues.
2. Cerebrovascular disorders. Cerebrovascular accident (CVA) vs.transient ischemic attack (TIA). Aneurisms and AVM’s. Their subtypes and effects on cognition.
3. Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and its different types. Neuroanatomy, natural history, cognitive profiles, and diagnosis. Forensic aspects of TBI.
4. Neuropsychiatric disorders: schizophrenias and affective disorders. Their neurobiology, subtypes, natural histories, and cognitive profiles. Diagnostic and differential diagnosis issues.
5. Neurodevelopmental disorders: dyslexias, non-verbal learning disabilities, autism, ADHD, Tourette’s syndrome. Their neurobiology, subtypes, natural histories, and cognitive profiles. Diagnostic and differential diagnosis issues.
6. Infectious diseases of the brain. Bacterial and viral encephalopathies: Lyme disease, Herpes Simplex encephalopathy, HIV encephalopathy. Their neurobiology, subtypes, natural histories, and cognitive profiles. Diagnostic issues.
7. Seizures and their effect on cognition. Their classification, neurobiology, and cognitive profiles. Diagnostic and differential diagnosis issues. Temporal lobe seizures.
8. Neoplasms and their effects on cognition. Types of brain tumors: malignant vs. “benign.” Their classification and effects on cognition.
9. Movement disorders and their cognitive component: Parkinson’s disease, Huntington’s disease, ALS. Their neurobiology, natural history, and cognitive profiles. Diagnostic and differential diagnosis issues.
10. Addictions and substance abuse. The effects of various illicit substances on the brain. Alcohol abuse and Korsakoff syndrome.

Fees: $495 for a one-day admission (student registration is also available).

Location: Park Lane Hotel, 36 Central Park South, New York, NY 10019.

Dates: January 25, 2014; February 22; March 22; April 26, May 24, 2014 (all Saturdays).

Time: 8am – 6pm (with a lunch break and two short breaks).

About Your Instructor

The course will be taught by Elkhonon Goldberg, Ph.D., ABPP (wikipedia) with the participation of additional select faculty. Elkhonon Goldberg has made a number of contributions to a wide range of topics in clinical neuropsychology and cognitive neuroscience. His work helped advance our understanding of the mechanisms of retrograde amnesia, the structure of perseverative processes and field-dependent behavior in frontal-lobe dysfunction, reticulo-frontal disconnection syndrome, cognitive impairment in dementias and Parkinson’s disease, cognitive enhancement in healthy aging and dementias, and other clinical conditions. Goldberg has co-authored several original tests and innovative experimental paradigms. Goldberg has authored several influential books and published a number of research papers in peer-reviewed journals. Goldberg is also a practicing neuropsychologist with wide-ranging clinical experience spanning more than 30 years, and a sought-after educator who lectures worldwide. He was a Visiting Professor at Hebrew University of Jerusalem,University of Sydney and has taught at other major universities worldwide. He has mentored a number of students and post-doctoral trainees, many of whom have become prominent neuropsychologists and neuroscientists in their own right. Elkhonon Goldberg is a Clinical Professor in the Department of Neurology of New York University School of Medicine and a Diplomate of The American Board of Professional Psychology in Clinical Neuropsychology. He is a recipient of The Copernicus Prize for his “contributions to interdisciplinary dialogue between neurosciences and neuropsychology, and The Tempos Hominis medal for international medical sciences education.” He is a foreign member of TheVenetian Institute of Science, Literature and Arts. His booksThe Executive Brain(2001),The Wisdom Paradox(2005), andThe New Executive Brain(2009) have been translated into close to 20 languages.He co-authored (with Alvaro Fernandez) The SharpBrains Guide to Cognitive Fitness and is the Chief Scientific Adviser of www.sharpbrains.comElkhonon Goldberg was a student and close associate of Alexander Luria, one of the “founding fathers” of neuropsychology as a scientific discipline.

FollowElkhonon Goldberg on LinkedIn and Google+.

Continuing Education Credits (CE credits)

CE credits are being offered through PsychoEducational Resources, Inc. (PER).

Forty-Five (45) Continuing Education credits (CE credits) are being offered for this course.

PER is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. PER maintains responsibility for this program and its content.

PER is an NBCC Approved Continuing Education Provider (ACEP) and a co-sponsor of this program. PER may award NBCC approved clock hours for programs that meet NBCC requirements (Approval # 5536). Please check with your state counseling board to see if they accept the NBCC providership.

PER is approved as a provider for continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards, 400 South Ridge Parkway, Suite B, Culpepper, VA22701.www.aswb.org. ASWB Approval Period:

4/15/12 – 4/15/15. Social workers should contact their regulatory board to determine course approval. The following recognize the ASWB program: AK, AL, AZ, CT, DC, DE, GA, ID, IN, IA, KY, MA, MD, MI, MO, MS, MT, NM, NC, ND, NJ, OH, OK, OR, PA, RI, SC, TN, TX, UT, VA, VI, VT, WA, WI, and WY.

PER is approved as a Continuing Education Provider by the National Association of Alcoholism and Drug Abuse.

Counselors (NAADAC) Provider #374.

PER maintains responsibility for these trainings and their content. For additional CE information please call PER at 800-892-9249 or e-mailsupport@per-ce.net.

To receive CE Certification you must complete the entire training and an evaluation of the training.

CE Certifications will be mailed out approximately 3-4 weeks after the conclusion of each of the training.

Learning objectives for this course in the format required by accreditation organizations are shown below.

This program is designed to help you:

1. Describe disorders of the developing brain:
   • ADHD: subtypes, brain mechanisms, and how it is diagnosed and misdiagnosed.
   • Dyslexias: phonological, and others.
   • Non-verbal learning disabilityandAsperger’s syndrome.
   • Autism: a syndrome with many causes.
   • Tourette’s syndrome and its relationship with ADHD.
2. Describe the types of Traumatic Brain Injury, underlying brain mechanisms, cognitive symptoms and their diagnosis.
3. Describe the brain mechanisms and cognitive symptoms of neuropsychiatric disorders: schizophrenias and affective disorders.
4. Describe disorders of the aging brain: mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and dementias: Alzheimer’s, Lewy body, Frototemporal, and vascular.
5. Describe executive function and dysfunction in development. Executive dysfunction and ADHD – same or different? Where do they overlap and where do they diverge?
6. Describe executive dysfunction in aging and dementias: Alzheimer’s, Lewy body, Fronto-temporal and others.
7. Describe executive dysfunction in Traumatic Brain Injury: “mild” TBI is not so mild.
8. Describe executive dysfunction in neuropsychiatric disorders: schizophrenia, affective disorders, Tourette’s syndrome and OCD.
9. Analyze the relationship between executive dysfunction and the law: The”criminal” brain.
10. Describe diagnosis of executive dysfunction: neuropsychological tools and clinical observations.
11. Describe memory changes in dementias. Memory is affected differently in different types of dementia (Alzheimer’s disease, Lewy body disease, Fronto-temporal dementia, small vessel disease). We ill discuss all this as part of the workshop.
12. Describe memory changes in Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). Anterograde vs. retrograde amnesia. We will discuss the complex patterns which characterize memory impairment at various stages of post-TBI recovery.
13. Describe memory-based learning disability – a forgotten syndrome. Any discussion of neurodevelopmental disorders usually revolves around ADHD and dyslexias. But memory impairment is also a common cause of neurodevelopmental cognitive difficulties, – except it has no name and is not listed in diagnostic manuals as a distinct entity. This commonly overlooked neurodevelopmental syndrome will be discussed in the workshop.
14. List the tools for diagnosing memory impairment. An elaborate arsenal of neuropsychological diagnostic instruments has been developed to assess memory and memory impairment. They will be reviewed here.
15. List the tools for cognitive enhancement of memory. Are there any tools available to enhance memory? We will find out in this workshop.
16. Describe disorders targeting the fragile left hemisphere: schizophrenia; fronto-temporal dementia.
17. Describe disorders targeting the right hemisphere: non-verbal learning disabilities; hemineglect.
18. Describe the causes of cognitive impairment in aging: Mild Cognitive Impairment and dementias:Alzheimer’s disease, Lewy body disease, Fronto-temporal dementia, Vascular dementia.
19. Describe advances in diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of dementias.
20. Explain what is Autism or “Autism SpectrumDisorders.” Review the hallmark features of this disorder.