Diseases affecting the brain, head and neck, and spine are prevalent in the emergency setting. Traumatic, vascular, or infectious events are more likely to present acutely, while exacerbations or complications of underlying chronic diseases such as inflammatory, neoplastic, metabolic, degenerative, or even congenital processes can also present in an urgent fashion and may pose a significant diagnostic challenge to clinicians and radiologists. Therefore, there is a strong need to adequately prepare radiologists, especially our trainees, for on-call neuroradiological emergencies.

Although many excellent, comprehensive neuroradiology textbooks are available, we feel that the most effective way of preparing for neuroradiological emergencies is through a concentrated series of case reviews. Our aim in this book is to develop a teaching curriculum specific for emergency neuroradiology and to supplement the large-volume reference books with a concise book, using a case-based, picture-rich format. It includes over 150 selected cases, which are divided into three sections and eighteen chapters, and cover the common as well as some uncommon emergent cases in brain, head and neck, and spine neuroradiology. Each case vignette consists of a short history, images, findings, and diagnosis, followed by focused discussion of differential diagnosis and key points, and supplemented with a short list of suggested readings. Readers can use it either as a primary learning tool or as a quick on-call reference guide.

We would like to thank our colleagues at the Virginia Commonwealth University and University of Virginia Medical Centers for their contributions. A number of residents and fellows have participated in writing up the cases and providing valuable feedback. We would also like to thank the editorial staff at Cambridge University Press for making this book possible, and, last but not least, Dr. Mauricio Castillo for writing a foreword to the book.