Classifications for neurological disorders have evolved from following the theory of the humors to modern anatomical pathology and, recently, to the germ theory that stared the etiological era, as seen in book content lists. The symptomatic approach towards neuronosology was widely used until the middle of the 19th century. The following books are representatives of this: "De Cerebri Morbis (1549)"; "De anima brutorum (1672)"; and "A Treatise on Nervous Disease (1820-1823)". During the Enlightenment, "Synopsis Nosologiae Methodicae (1769)" had a great repercussion subsequently on neuronosology. "Lehrbuch der Nerven-Krankheiten des Menschen (1840-1846)" was the first systematic treatise in neurology, and "A Treatise on the Diseases of the Nervous System (1871)" was the first American textbook of neurology, and probably the first comprehensive one. The first Brazilian textbook was "Lições sobre as moléstias do sistema nervoso, feitas na Faculdade de Medicina do Rio de Janeiro (1878)". A presentation going from causes of death to the International Classification of Diseases and their importance for neurology is also made.
neurology; nosology; history
