Somatic and Psychiatric Aspects of Childhood Allergies.

This monograph presents many points of view concerning the pathogenesis of allergic disorders in children, summarizes evidence for the importance of emotional as well as immunologic factors, and cites the thoughts of leading workers in psychiatry and allergy who have a special interest in children. It contains common sense ideas and suggestions of value in the management of children who have allergic disorders. Expressed divergences of opinion, however, underscore the complexity of the mechanisms which are operative in allergy, and indicate a need for refinements in methods of diagnosis and in the objective assessment of therapy.

A minor criticism is that although advances in descriptive and theoretical aspects of allergy are stressed, there is little space devoted to current research in basic immunology as it relates to allergy, and not enough is said about the vast area of ignorance which remains. The great need for fresh investigative approaches and for