Neurological disorders represent a complex array of medical conditions that fundamentally disrupt the functioning of the nervous system. These disorders affect the brain, spinal cord, and nerve networks, presenting unique diagnosis, treatment, and patient care challenges. At their core, they represent disruptions to the intricate communication systems within the nervous system, stemming from genetic predispositions, environmental factors, infections, structural abnormalities, or degenerative processes.

The impact of neurological disorders is profound and far-reaching. Conditions like epilepsy create recurring seizures through abnormal electrical brain activity, while multiple sclerosis damages the protective myelin covering of nerve fibers, interrupting communication between the brain and body. Parkinson's disease progressively affects movement through the loss of dopamine-producing nerve cells, and strokes can cause immediate and potentially permanent neurological damage by interrupting blood flow to the brain. Diagnosing these disorders requires sophisticated medical techniques. Neuroimaging technologies like MRI and CT scans and electroencephalograms provide crucial insights into the intricate changes occurring within the nervous system. Treatment approaches are equally complex, involving multidisciplinary strategies, including medications to manage symptoms, control brain activity, or slow disease progression, coupled with neurological rehabilitation to help patients develop compensatory strategies.

Neurological disorder
Neurons in person with epilepsy, 40x magnified
Specialty	Neurology

Ideally, A neurological disorder is any disorder of the nervous system. Structural, biochemical or electrical abnormalities in the brain, spinal cord, or other nerves can result in a range of symptoms. Examples of symptoms include paralysis, muscle weakness, poor coordination, loss of sensation, seizures, confusion, pain, tauopathies, and altered levels of consciousness. There are many recognized neurological disorders; some are relatively common, but many are rare.

Interventions for neurological disorders include preventive measures, lifestyle changes, physiotherapy or other therapy, neurorehabilitation, pain management, medication, operations performed by neurosurgeons, or a specific diet.^[1][2] The World Health Organization estimated in 2006 that neurological disorders and their sequelae (direct consequences) affect as many as one billion people worldwide and identified health inequalities and social stigma/discrimination as major factors contributing to the associated disability and their impact.^[3]

Although the brain and spinal cord are surrounded by tough membranes, enclosed in the bones of the skull and spinal vertebrae, and chemically isolated by the blood-brain barrier, they are very susceptible if compromised. Nerves tend to lie deep under the skin but can still become exposed to damage. Individual neurons, the neural circuits, and the nerves into which they form are susceptible to electrochemical and structural disruption. Neuroregeneration may occur in the peripheral nervous system and thus overcome or work around injuries to some extent, but it is thought to be rare in the brain and spinal cord.^{[citation needed]}

The specific causes of neurological problems vary but can include genetic disorders, congenital abnormalities or disorders, infections, lifestyle, or environmental health problems such as pollution, malnutrition, brain damage, spinal cord injury, nerve injury, or gluten sensitivity (with or without intestinal damage or digestive symptoms).^[2][4] Metal poisoning, where metals accumulate in the human body and disrupt biological processes, has been reported to induce neurological problems, at least in the case of lead.^[4] The neurological problem may start in another body system that interacts with the nervous system. For example, cerebrovascular disease involves brain injury due to problems with the blood vessels (cardiovascular system) supplying the brain; autoimmune disorders involve damage caused by the body's own immune system; lysosomal storage diseases such as Niemann–Pick disease can lead to neurological deterioration. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence recommends considering the evaluation of underlying coeliac disease in people with unexplained neurological symptoms, particularly peripheral neuropathy or ataxia.^[5]

In a substantial minority of cases of neurological symptoms, no neurological cause can be identified using current testing procedures, and such "idiopathic" conditions can invite different theories about what is occurring.^{[citation needed]} Generally speaking, a substantial number of neurological disorders may have originated from a previous clinically not recognized viral infection. For example, it is thought that infection with the Hepatitis E virus, which is often initially asymptomatic may provoke neurological disorders,^[6] but there are many other examples as well.

Numerous examples have been described of neurological disorders that are associated with mutated DNA repair genes (for reviews see^[7]). Inadequate repair of DNA damages can lead directly to cell death and neuron depletion as well as disruptions in the pattern of epigenetic alterations required for normal neuronal function.^{[citation needed]}

Neurons are highly oxygenated cells and as a consequence DNA damage caused by chronic exposure to endogenous reactive oxygen species is a substantial challenge for neurons.^[8] Germline mutations deficient in the repair of DNA damages cause neuronal dysfunction and are etiologically linked to many neurological disorders.^[8] For example, the neurological disorders, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD) are linked to DNA damage accumulation and DNA repair deficiency.^[9]

Neurological disorders can be categorized according to the primary location affected, the primary type of dysfunction involved, or the primary type of cause. The broadest division is between central nervous system disorders and peripheral nervous system disorders. The Merck Manual lists brain, spinal cord disorders, and nerve disorders in the following overlapping categories:^[10]

Nervous system
Human nervous system
Identifiers
MeSH	D009422
Anatomical terminology [edit on Wikidata]

• Brain:
  • Brain dysfunction according to type:
    • Apraxia (patterns or sequences of movements)
    • Agnosia (identifying things or people)
    • Amnesia (memory)
    • Aphasia (language)
    • Dysarthria (speech)
• Spinal cord disorders
• Peripheral nervous system disorders (e.g., Peripheral neuropathy)
• Cranial nerve disorder (e.g., trigeminal neuralgia)
• Autonomic nervous system disorders (e.g., dysautonomia, multiple system atrophy)
• Epilepsy
• Movement disorders of the central and peripheral nervous system such as Parkinson's disease, essential tremor, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS),^{[failed verification]} and Tourette syndrome^{[failed verification]}
• Sleep disorders (e.g., narcolepsy)
• Some speech disorders (e.g., stuttering)
• Headaches (e.g., migraine, cluster headache, tension headache)
• Pain (e.g., complex regional pain syndrome, fibromyalgia)
• Delirium
• Dementia (e.g., Alzheimer's disease)
• Coma and impaired consciousness, (e.g., stupor)
• Stroke
• Tumors of the nervous system (e.g., cancer)
• Multiple sclerosis and other demyelinating diseases
• Brain infections
• Meningitis
• Prion diseases (a type of infectious agent)

Many of the diseases and disorders listed above have neurosurgical treatments available, such as Tourette syndrome, Parkinson's disease, and essential tremor.^{[citation needed]}

Neurological disorders in non-human animals are treated by veterinarians.^[11][12]

A neurological examination can, to some extent, assess the impact of neurological damage and disease on brain function in terms of behavior, memory, or cognition. Behavioral neurology specializes in this area. In addition, clinical neuropsychology uses neuropsychological assessment to precisely identify and track problems in mental functioning, usually after some sort of brain injury or neurological impairment.^{[citation needed]}

Alternatively, a condition might first be detected through the presence of abnormalities in mental functioning, and further assessment may indicate an underlying neurological disorder. There are sometimes unclear boundaries in the distinction between disorders treated within neurology, and mental disorders treated within the other medical specialty of psychiatry, or other mental health professions such as clinical psychology. In practice, cases may present as one type, but be assessed as more appropriate to the other.^[13] Neuropsychiatry deals with mental disorders arising from specific identified diseases of the nervous system.^{[citation needed]}

One area that can be contested is in cases of idiopathic neurological symptoms - conditions where the cause cannot be established. It can be decided in some cases, perhaps by exclusion of any accepted diagnosis, that higher-level brain/mental activity is causing symptoms, referred to as functional symptoms, rather than the symptoms originating in the area of the nervous system from which they may appear to originate. Cases involving these symptoms are classified as functional disorders ("functional" in this context is usually contrasted with the old term "organic disease"). For example, in functional neurologic disorder (FND), those affected present with various neurological symptoms such as functional seizures, numbness, paresthesia, and weakness, among others. Such cases may be contentiously interpreted as being "psychological" rather than "neurological." conversion disorder, If the onset functional symptoms appear to be causally linked to emotional states or responses to social stress or social contexts, it may be referred to as conversion disorder.^[14]

On the other hand, dissociation refers to partial or complete disruption of the integration of a person's conscious functioning, such that a person may feel detached from one's emotions, body and/or immediate surroundings. In extreme cases, this may be diagnosed as depersonalization-derealization disorder. There are also conditions viewed as neurological where a person appears to consciously register neurological stimuli that cannot possibly be coming from the part of the nervous system to which they would normally be attributed, such as phantom pain or synesthesia, or where limbs act without conscious direction, as in alien hand syndrome.

Conditions that are classed as mental disorders, learning disabilities, and forms of intellectual disability, are not themselves usually dealt with as neurological disorders. Biological psychiatry seeks to understand mental disorders in terms of their basis in the nervous system, however. In clinical practice, mental disorders are usually indicated by a mental state examination, or other type of structured interview or questionnaire process. At the present time, neuroimaging (brain scans) alone cannot accurately diagnose a mental disorder or tell the risk of developing one; however, it can be used to rule out other medical conditions such as a brain tumor.^[15] In research, neuroimaging and other neurological tests can show correlations between reported and observed mental difficulties and certain aspects of neural function or differences in brain structure. In general, numerous fields intersect to try to understand the basic processes involved in mental functioning, many of which are brought together in cognitive science. The distinction between neurological and mental disorders can be a matter of some debate, either in regard to specific facts about the cause of a condition or in regard to the general understanding of brain and mind.^{[citation needed]}

Impacts

The consequences of neurological disorders extend beyond medical diagnosis. They profoundly affect patients' psychological well-being, social interactions, and overall life trajectory. Families and caregivers face significant challenges in supporting individuals with these conditions, often requiring extensive resources and emotional resilience (Nur & Kung, 2023). Ongoing research continues to push the boundaries of understanding. Advances in genetic research, neuroimaging, and treatment technologies offer hope for more effective interventions. Emerging fields like neuroplasticity research demonstrate the brain's remarkable ability to adapt, opening new possibilities for treatment and rehabilitation. As medical science progresses, the approach becomes increasingly personalized, recognizing the unique neurological profile of each patient and the incredible complexity of the human nervous system.

• Disorder Index of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke