PSYCHOSOMATICS

evidence of specificity of psychological stress andalso noted that the transition from benign to malig­nant hypertension was <:orrelated with an emotionallysignificant life situation. He also quotes Weiss,who in a long term study, had concluded thatpsychotherapy could remove "blood pressure phobia"but did not necessarily lower the blood pressurefigures. The anniversary reaction, described byWeiss, was common in patients whose fathers hadhypertension and who died when the patient wasin his teens.

In a discussion of reserpine therapy, the possi­bility of the occurrence of depression is emphasized.

The etiologic role of the catecholamines in es­sential hypertension is considered by Wilhelm Raab.It is suggested that vascular over reactivity to neu­rogenic epinephrine contributes to the pathogenicbackground of essential hypertension. This mecha­nism is mediated by corticord-induced intracellularsodium accumulation. Liberation of norepinephrineis related to the neurogenic maintenance of elevatedsystolic and diastolic pressure levels, while epine­phrine is involved under conditions of stress and"sympathetic storms." Urinary catecholamine excre­tion is seen under emotional strain.

This text, with its wealth of material, representsthe very latest concepts of the etiology, pathogenesisand treabnent of hypertension. The general physicianwill find that it offers an excellent comprehensivereview of hypertension.

W.D.

HUMORS, HORMONES AND NEUROSECRE­TlONS. BII Chandler McC. Brooks, Jerome L.Gilbert, Harold A. Levll and David R. Curtis.313 pages. New York: University Publishers,1962. $7.50.

The authors present a most readable summary ofcurrent research in this area. The fact that humor­ally transmitted agents control body function andthat specific substances control behavior points upthe growth and development of modern physiology.

Modern endocrinology is seen to evolve as aninterdisciplinary science, shaped by the observationsof anatomists, biochemists, physiologists and clini­cians. Its evolution is traced historically back tothe earliest concept of body humors. The hormonesof the digestive system and pancreas as well as thevarious endocrine glands are considered in detail,both as to the historical aspects as well as currenttheory and clinical implications. Excellent diagramsillustrate the mechanisms involved in their action.

A special chapter considers the chemical transmis­sion of neuronal activity. Although there is muchstill to be learned about the formation and fate ofacetylcholine and its associated adrenergic transmit­ter, norepinephrine, considerable information is avail­able to the reader.

The role of the nervous system inclusive of hypo­thalamic control of the endocrine glands reviewsanatomical, histochemical, biochemical and neuro­physiological evidence. The authors point out theareas where specific information is still lacking;despite the bewildering complexity of various inter-

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relationships they succeed in producing a most lucidpicture of current concepts.

This book is recommended to those who believethat an understanding of body and mind is aninterdisciplinary affair requiring a broad and com­prehensive approach.

W.D.

A SEARCH FOR MAN'S SANITY. The SelectedLetters of Trigant Burrow. 615 pages. New York:Oxford University Press, 1958. $8.75.

Dr. Trigant Burrow was one of the most controver­sial figures in the early days of psychoanalysis in theU.S.A. Early in his career he diverged from themain stream of psycho-analysis, becoming increas­ingly aware of the social implications of neurosis.In 1927, he organized the Lifwynn Foundation, tofurther his research into group analysis. DoctorBurrow carried on a most intensive correspondencewith leaders in many disciplines; this book containsmany of his exchanges with Freud, Jung, HavelockEllis, Walter B. Cannon, Adolf Meyer, Alfred Kor­zybski, Smith Ely Zeliffe, Paul Federn, A. A. Brill,Harry Stack Sullivan and others.

Doctor Burrow's thesis points to the long recog­nized truth that "man is not a detached particleof life, but that we are part of one another"; theanalysis of the individual can never be completedwithout a consideration of the group of which heis an integral part. Later, he became increasinglyinvolved with the organic foundations of personality,making "bold use of the tenns biology and anatomy";however, this reviewer cannot find any tangible,concrete contributions to this concept in these manyletters.

This book should be of interest to all those inter­ested in the early struggles of psychoanalysis. Theinevitable fate of the renegade is depicted in fullclarity.

W.D.

DAS NERVENSYSTEM DES MENSCHEN. ByDr. Med. Max Clara. Third Edition. 808 pages.Leipzig: Johann Ambrosius Barth Verlag, 1959.78.00 DM.

The third edition of Professor ~Iax Clara's text­book on neuroanatomy contains a systematic de­scription of structures and their functions in themanner in which nowadays morphologists andphysiologists have integrated their fields of inquiry.Sequentially, the tasks of the central nervous system,its component parts, division and architecture areelaborated. This then is followed by major chaptersconcerning medulla, spinal nerves, autonomic nervoussystem and segmental distribution of the peripheralnerves. The remaining two-thirds of the volumeare concerned with anatomy and neuro-physiology ofthe brain. The superhly illustrated volume repre­sents German teaching in its best tradition and isrecommended to student and physician alil<e.

K.W.B.

Volume IV