Evolution of neuronetworks.

Since the 1970s, the care of critically ill neurologic and neurosurgical patients has emerged as a developing subspecialty. Management of these patients involves an enormous amount of data generation and analysis. Review of the history of neuroepidemiology and neurocritical care demonstrates the inevitability of their present unwiedly burden of information. Compelling advantages of computerization in direct patient care include aid in data acquisition, analysis and remote access. Infrastructure and resources used to collect data on individual patients may be augmented to archive data in clinical databases. Several investigators have initiated information management projects including automation of beside clinical documentation, development of systems for remote access to information and patient registries to study the natural history and outcome of specific neurological conditions. These are steps toward the development of integrated systems to aid in patient monitoring, data management, continuous quality improvement and the generation of hypotheses for further clinical investigation. Improvements in information management technology will allow increased efficiency in an era where information generation continues to increase exponentially.