Edited by Leo B.A. Van de Putte, Daniel E. Furst, H. James Williams, and Piet L.C.M. van Riel. 709 pp. New York, Marcel Dekker, 1998. $225. ISBN 0-8247-9516-4.
A generation ago, in the 1960s, many exciting developmentswere taking place in rheumatology. Clinical studies were greatlyimproving the classification of the systemic rheumatic diseases,basic research was elucidating the immune system and its centralinvolvement in the pathogenesis of many diseases, and controlledclinical trials were beginning to validate the effectivenessof some treatments. During the ensuing two decades there werefew important therapeutic advances. Now, rheumatology may beon the threshold of a new era with the emergence of specificbiologic agents that target selected cell-surface antigens andproinflammatory cytokines and the development of strategiesin which . . . [Full Text of this Article]
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