Allergy of the Nervous System.

Much of this volume is devoted to an evangelistic hard sell for an allergic etiology for a raft of neurologic and psychiatric conditions such as headache, epilepsy, tension-fatigue syndrome, behavior disorder, neuroses, and psychoses. The evidence presented for such a conclusion is almost completely anecdotal. The sweeping generalizations made from observation of individual cases are unlikely to impress even the least critical of physician readers. The chapter on "Allergic Neuropathies and Demyelinating Diseases" by Philip M. Gottlieb stands out as an exception, being well written and a much better balanced presentation of available data relating experimental allergic encephalomyelitis and experimental allergic neuritis to naturally occurring disease. It would be unfortunate if this chapter were to bestow credibility on many of the concepts presented elsewhere in the book.

The concept that allergic reactions can produce a tremendous variety of clinical syndromes involving the nervous system seems likely to be valid even