Exploring the key factors behind neurophobia: A systematic review of the English, Spanish and Portuguese literature

Medical students and practitioners often perceive neurology as one of the most challenging specialties. Neurophobia, which has been described as the fear of clinical neurology and neural sciences, may impact the ability to apply the knowledge of basic sciences to routine clinical practice, thus compromising the care of patients with neurological disorders. It also reportedly plays a role in choosing neurology as a career option. In this manuscript, we reviewed the existing evidence on neurophobia and analyzed the perceived factors behind it among medical students and practitioners. Multiple online databases were searched to retrieving studies in English, Spanish, and Portuguese published between 1994 and 2021. Fifteen studies from eleven countries met the inclusion criteria and involved 6103 medical students and practitioners. Data were obtained from practitioners and students at different education levels, thus allowing to get a complete overview of the phenomenon. The subject's difficulty among other specialties and the lack of confidence were identified as the most relevant factors. More research is needed to determine the effects of minimal neuroscience exposure in the context of clinical practice and to identify interventions to develop and promote a new culture based on “neurophilia”.