Dear Colleagues,

 

Since the end of communism in 1990 in Mongolia, there have been almost no studies reported on brain-related disorders including neurological, psychiatric, and neurosurgical disorders registered in international scientific databases such as PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science. Therefore, we established the Mongolian Neuroscience Society in 2014 in Ulaanbaatar to promote brain science and study brain-related disorders in the population.

For a fundamental basis for both basic and applied research in neuroscience, the priority of our research is to determine the epidemiology, clinical characteristics, diagnostics, treatment, causes, and risk factors of brain-related disorders in the general population. Accordingly, most works presented at the Annual Meetings of Mongolian Neuroscience Society are clinically oriented, although the meeting is an umbrella-conference for all local neuroscientists, physicians, and psychologists.

The aim of the Special Issue is to publish the results of recent studies on brain-related disorders that include but not limited to the selected works presented at the Annual Meetings of Mongolian Neuroscience Society. Our objective will focus on an overview of brain-related disorders among the general populations that are investigated using modern techniques. The variety of those techniques may extend from simple methods such as blood tests and neurophysiological examinations to more advanced innovative methods such as functional MRI and non-invasive brain stimulation techniques. Examples include validated self-report instruments for disease screening and heart rate variability for testing autonomic nervous functions.

Moreover, it's immensely important to investigate the brain-related disorders with regard to the particular effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on the mental health and the quality of life of the general population worldwide. The impact of the pandemic on vulnerable individuals such as patients with diabetes, major depressive disorders with suicidal thoughts, or neurodegenerative diseases is to be determined as well as it is expected an increased prevalence of mental disorders including stress-related, alcohol use, depressive, and anxiety disorders during the pandemic.

Original research articles, reviews, case reports, and rapid reports on recent advances in clinical neuroscience research relevant to the development of cutting-edge techniques for novel diagnostics, treatment, and prevention of brain-related disorders are within the scope of the Special Issue. We also welcome neuroradiological, neurosurgical, and neurophysiological studies that explore the neural basis of brain-related disorders.

 

Dr. Battuvshin Lkhagvasuren, Dr. Darambazar Gantulga and Prof. Damdindorj Boldbaatar

Guest Editors