This is the first of two sections of the third volume of a five-volume German encyclopedia on dermatology and venereal diseases. This issue alone lists 22 contributors from various German and Austrian dermatological centers. In it the effects of external influences on the skin and allergic and toxic manifestations, including eczema, are covered in detail. The first section deals with thermal and electrical burns and the effects produced by acute and chronic exposure to cold. Electrical and chemical burns are discussed, but the damaging effects of ionizing radiation are omitted. The effects of light on the skin, and diseases caused by light, including porphyria, are presented in an interesting and comprehensive manner. There is a chapter on dieases of the peripheral blood vessels, including acrocyanosis, livedo, Raynaud's disease, and the forms of angiitis.
In the chapter on varicose veins and phlebitis,the conservative forms of treatment are emphasized, including conventional means