Allergic diseases constitute a sizable, significant part of pediatric and general practice. The pathogenetic mechanism of many of these diseases is known to be the immediate allergic reaction, while others are found to be due to reactions of delayed allergy and auto-antibody reactions. Whether one uses the term "allergy" or "hypersensitivity" to denote all of these diseases is a semantic choice. The editor of this volume prefers the former, the reviwer the latter term. Of greatest importance is to recognize the broad and expanding field of hypersensitivity and its importance to the practice of medicine.
This book is an effort on the part of the New York City Allergy Society to bring to the generalist, pediatrician, specialist, and student some aspects of the current knowledge of the scope, mechanism, investigation, clinical manifestations, and management of various kinds of disease of allergic origin. Much but not all of it will interest