also occurs. New outbreaks of yellow fever have occurred in Colombia and Trinidad and new outbreaks of rift valley fever have occurred in Egypt. Chapter 6, Arenaviruses: The biochemical and physical properties have now been clar ified, and they show a remarkable uniformity in the various viruses constituting the group. The possibility that prenatal infection with LCM may result in hydrocephalus and chorioretinitis has been raised. Serologic surveys have suggested the existence of Lassa virus infection in Guinea, Central African Empire, Mali, Senegal, Cameroon, and Benin, in addition to earlier identification in Nigeria, Liberia, and Sierra Leone. Chapter 7, Coronaviruses: New studies have confirmed the important role of these viruses in common respiratory illnesses of children and adults. The viruses are now known to contain a single positive strand of RNA. About 50% of corona virus infections result in clinical illness. About 5% of common colds are caused by strain DC 43 in winter. Chapter 8, Cytomegalovirus: Sections on pathogenesis of CMV in relation to organ transplantation and mononucleosis, as well as sections on the risk and features of con genital infection and disease, have been expanded. There are encouraging preliminary results with a live CMV vaccine, but the questions of viral persistence and oncogenicity require further evaluation.

Viral Infections of Humans: Epidemiology and Control

Evans, Alfred S (edit)

Health, Fitness & Dieting

Plenum Medical Book Co.

All around us, in this age of consumerism, are expressions of public expectations regarding the quality of medical care. Among the responses of the medical profession to this growing public demand has been a cre scendo of interest in continuing education. Continuing education is not a new concern for the physician. Most major professional organizations were founded to increase the exchange of information among members. But something new is in the wind. Both inside and outside the profes sion, the question is becoming more and more insistent: What does at tendance at meetings or exposure to other types of prepared materials have to do with the quality of care that is provided? Recertification, reexamination, and peer review of outcomes of practice-subjects only recently unmentionable-have become common issues before specialty boards, legislatures, hospital boards, insurance carriers, and even medical societies. As of October of 1979, all 22 of the member boards of the American Board of Medical Specialties had made commitments to the principle of periodic recertification of their members. Most boards have explicitly acknowledged that the cognitive skills measured in the objective examination do not assure clinical competence. An assumption behind information-assessing recertification efforts is that, though mastery of the current knowledge upon which clinical decisions should be made does not guarantee competent practice, the lack of it probably impairs competent practice.

Problems in General Surgery (REVIEWING SURGICAL TOPICS)

Pickleman, Jack

Bacterial Infections of Humans

Feldman, Harry A.

The majority of the offending toxicants to be reviewed in this volume were devel oped to help mankind, and it is only with prolonged or widespread application that their adverse effects have been recognized. Conversely, in the case of pre scrip tion drugs, there has been an attempt to identify the adverse effects in advance and incorporate these risks into the decision of approval for human consumption. Unfortunately, for those drugs in which recognized injury occurs only after prolonged use, such appraisals are made in retrospect. Despite this, most renal injury induced by drugs or toxicants can be either prevented by excluding drugs with unacceptable side effects or interrupted by eliminating the offending agent once damage is manifested. The fact that prevention, reversibility, or arrest of renal injury is possible provided a major impetus for this publication. Since no international registry for nephrotoxic injury exists, estimates of incidence must rely on less than ideal sources. Recently I, together with Dr. William Bennett, summarized a survey of the frequency of various categories of nephrologic disease (Porter and Bennett, 1981). Based on this survey, we projected that in nearly one of ten patients seeking nephrologic consultation a nephrotoxic etiology may be involved. Of cases of end-stage renal disease, between 3 and 4% are due to drug nephrotoxicity, according to recent published results(European Dialysis and Transplant Association, 1979). For acute renal failure, antibiotics and contrast agents persist as major offending agents, while for chronic renal failure, analgesics remain a worldwide problem.

Nephrotoxic Mechanisms of Drugs and Environmental Toxins

Porter, George A.

For almost a century now, since Freud described the basic motivations and Pavlov the basic mechanisms of human behavior, we have had a reasonable concept of the forces that drive us. Only recently have we gained any real insight into how the brain really works to produce such behavior. The new developments in cognitive psychology and neuroscience have taught us things about the function of the brain that would have been inconceivable even ten years ago. Yet, there still remains a tremendous gap between the two studies-human behavior and brain function-a gap which often seems irrec oncilable in view of the basic differences in the methodologies and approaches of the two fields. Students of behavior are frequently disinterested in the underlying neu rophysiology while neurophysiologists tend to consider the concepts of psychiatrists and clinical psychologists too vague and theoretical to be applicable to their own more limited schemata. Several valiant attempts have been made by experimentalists to develop a theoretical context in which behavior is described, not separately from brain function but rather as its direct outgrowth. This present work is still another attempt to develop a theoretical system which, given the limitations of our present knowledge, as completely as possible, the underlying brain mechanisms that influ will describe ence and determine human behavior. The main emphasis of this work, however, will be not on normal behavior but rather on more neurotic manifestations.

Conscious and Unconscious Programs in the Brain (Perspectives in Social Psychology)

Kissin, Benjamin

Psychology & Counseling

For every news story in the popular press detailing the horrors and the violence associated with cocaine, there have been corresponding studies in the medical litera ture shedding new light on our understanding of this most troublesome drug. Our knowledge of addiction, and specifically cocaine addiction, has increased dra matically within the last few years. We stand on the threshold of an exciting new era in addictionology that promises better treatments, improved diagnostic proce dures, and more effective preventative strategies. We must prepare today for the avalanche of exciting dis coveries that will arrive in the coming years. Along with the first two volumes in this series, Marijuana and Alcohol, this book strives to help the general medical community to stay abreast of the latest medical information on addiction, while presenting a fundamental resource on the neurobiology, physiology, epidemiology, history, diagnosis, treatment, and p- v vi PREFACE vention of cocaine abuse. In addition, the comorbidity of cocaine abuse and eating disorders, depression, anx iety, hypertension, and various other disorders is dis cussed in detail. Finally, the last chapter presents new strategies tailored to specific patient groups and aimed at confronting the ever-changing face of drug abuse.

Cocaine (Drugs of Abuse: A Comprehensive Series for Clinicians)

Gold, Mark S.

Addiction & Recovery

Responding to demographic changes among physicians and six years of new experiences since the first edition, Dr. Myers has revamped his well received work. He includes new information on older physicians, gay and lesbian physicians, medical student abuse, economic strain on interns, depression, malpractice, ethical violations, and other stressors which may cause marital difficulties. Therapists seeking to council symptomatic physicians, as well physicians themselves, will find this a humane, readable, and useful book.

Doctors’ Marriages: A Look at the Problems and Their Solutions

Myers, Michael F.

Computers & Technology

See the best price to sell, buy or rent books by the Plenum Medical Book Co. publisher. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Plenum Medical Book Co.