Drs. Peck and Palitz have succeeded in presenting a wealth of modern practical diagnostic and therapeutic measures for the general practitioner to use in selected common dermatoses. Since the authors have a vast experience in practice, and since the senior author has been at his profession for well over 25 years, this permits some conclusions based on personal observations, conclusions which may not all be in accord with orthodox teaching or majority opinion. And indeed the authors are aware of this, for they state in their preface: “This will be a personal book. Our own personal belief concerning etiology and pathologic-physiology will be presented.” It is therefore not astonishing that there will be certain areas of sharp disagreement between the authors and some of their colleagues.

Among the possible areas for disagreement are: the minimizing of the value of palpation as a diagnostic aid (p. 24); the statement that a new complement-fixation test is of practical value for the diagnosis of candida infections of the skin (p. 35).