Dr. G N Menon is a specialist in Clinical Pharmacology, Internal Medicine and Neurology, with doctorate degrees in all three subjects. A medical research scientist of considerable international experience and expertise on both sides of the academic / industrial divide, he was one of the pioneers of international clinical development of new drugs for two decades, in the 1970s and 1980s, thus placing him in the vanguard of many therapeutic advances, particularly in the Neurosciences.

Dr. Menon is a fellow of the Royal College of Physicians, the American College of Physicians, the American College of Neurology, the Royal Society of Medicine and a Foundation Fellow of the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Medicine of the Royal Colleges of Physicians of the U.K.

An advisor to governments of developing countries on matters pertaining to drug development, a research consultant to many international pharmaceutical companies, Dr. Menon has designed numerous controlled clinical studies, international multicentre clinical studies, international multicentre clinical trials, bioavailability, drug interaction and pharmacokinetic studies. He has authored and co-authored papers on clinical research methodology published in international journals. He was invited to edit the Special Issue of Current Science in 1991 on ‘The Role of Clinical Research in Health Care in Developing Countries’.

Dr. Menon is a visiting professor at universities around the world and a frequent invited speaker at international conferences, seminars, symposia and workshops. He is the architect of the first symposium on ‘Epidemiology in Medicine’ held in Asia in 1992, the proceedings of which comprise this book.