Nearly 400 researchers participated in the fifteenth "http://neurotrauma.net/pic2012/" International Symposium on Neuromonitoring and Treatment of the Neurocritical Patient (PIC2012), celebrated the 16th and 17th of November in Barcelona, and organized by the Research Unit in Neurotraumatology and Neurosurgery at VHIR (UNINN), led by Dr. Joan Sahuquillo.Dr. Marc Simard, head of the Neurosurgery Service at Baltimore VA Hospital in the United States, pronounced the opening conference “Revisiting the molecular mechanisms of brain edema” and Dr. Geoffrey Manley, head of the Neurosurgery Service at San Francisco General Hospital, continued with the conference “Redefining Traumatic Brain Injury”. During the Symposium were celebrated different expositive round tables to tackle the updates on the pathophysiology and treatment of the neurocritical patient, head trauma in children, and controversy on the role of decompressive craniectomy in neurotraumatic patients.Besides the round tables, UNNIN organized the previous courses about specific issues of physiopathology, monitoring and treatment of neurocritical patients. VHIR’s director, Joan Comella, presided the inauguration of the Symposium.