Diagnostic Procedures for Viral and Rickettsial Diseases

Abstract

The 1948 and 1956 editions established this book as authoritative and preeminent in its field; the third edition is fully up to the standards previously set. Most of the 29 chapters by 35 contributors are either new or completely rewritten. Topics which now warrant entire chapters include: Measles (by Enders), varicella-herpes zoster (Weller), cytomegaloviruses (Weller, Rowe), respiratory syncytial virus (Hamre), parainfluenza (Chanock, K. Johnson), adenoviruses (Rose), Eaton PPLO (Clyde, Jordan), and fluorescent antibody techniques (Liu). Two fine chapters on arboviruses (Work, Hammon), and two on enteroviruses (Melnick, Wenner, Rosen) replace six previous chapters on such topics as yellow fever, encephalitis, and polio. The longest chapter, 99 pages, rightfully is devoted to tissue culture methods (Schmidt). This reader would have preferred one more chapter, written cooperatively by several authors, devoted to complement fixation tests. This change would have permitted ready comparison of various CF methods, and would have avoided the duplication inherent in several detailed expositions scattered throughout the book.