Primer on genetic counseling

Once limited to rare mendelian disorders, genetic counseling is playing an ever-increasing role in the multidisciplinary approach to predicting, diagnosing, and managing neurologic disease. However, genetic counseling services may not be optimized because of lack of availability and lack of knowledge regarding when it is appropriate to refer, what occurs in genetic counseling, and how genetic counseling can affect care. These issues are addressed in this article, along with corresponding clinical scenarios. Websites to find genetic counseling services and resources are also provided.