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Brain tumors in childhood
B O O K REVIEWS BRAIN
TUMORS
1N C H I L D H O O D .
HENRY M. Cu~Eo a n d CARL W . RAIqD
Charles C. Thomas, Springfield, Ill., 1952, 2 2 4 pp. $5.75.
W e are indebted "to Doctors Cuneo and Rand for a beautiful presented and nicely organized account of their experiences in the field of children's tumors. The character of the tumors they have met and their results in dealing with them appear to have been substantially the same as those of others. Organized according to pathological t~pe, and presenting frequent photomicrooraphs of the tissue involved, the book appears somewhat like a resume in miniature of the larger works on the subject. For their denunciation of ventricular estimation, for the suggestion that papilloedema is apt to be associated with dilatation of the third or fourth x,entricle, or obstruction of the aqueduct of Sylvius rather than with increased intracranial pressure pet" se, and for their feeling that Macewen's sign is not due to the separated bones knocking together they are to be commended. Their explanation of head tilting is intriguing. Their use of vertebral angiography for choroid plexus tumors is valuable. As electroencephalography reveals little relative to other methods in subtentorial tumors, the book
necessarily contains littl which is of interest to electroencephalographers. The general statement that tumors beneath the tentorium frequently are associated with slow waves in the occipital lobes corresponds, I am sure, with the experience of all, T h e suggestion that such occipital waves are bilaterally synchronous does not entirely correspond to the reviewer's experience who has seen such waves on only one side and frequently, waves which are not synchronous .on the two sides and not of the same rate on the two sides. T h e implication that occipital waves at three and six per second have a peculiar significance for pressure beneath the tentorium is to be taken with caution. T h e reviewer has seen occipital waves at these frequencies in many conditions. Three per second waves upon closing the eyes are a common occipital finding in juvenile epileptics. T h e book although most interesting to the neurosurgeon and the pediatrician is not one which the electroencephalographer will urgently require. THF, ODOR~ J. CASE, M,D.
HISTORY OF NEUROLOGICAL
SURGERY
A. EARL WALKER
Williams and Wilkins, Baltimore, 1951, 583 pp., $12.00.
This is the only book of this type ever to have been written on the development of surgery of the nervous system. It begins with the presentation of the pre-historic neurological surgery when trephination of the human skulls for all mental diseases was commonly performed in Peru and Europe. T h e development of neurosurgery was very slow and remained at a standstill until late in the nineteenth century, when the modern neurological surgery was definitely established by pioneers, such as Horsley in England, Krause in Europe and Cushing in America. Subjects such as techniques of neurological surgery; the management of trauma; surgery of the
autonomic nervous system; psycho-surgery, etc. are individually presented. O f great interest to any one who is interested in the development of neurological surgery is the individual biography of the pioneers presented before each chapter. Readers are brought into close acquaintance with the life long struggling and contribution that they made for advancement of neurological surgery. There are five hundred and thirty-eight pages in this book and many interesting and valuable illustrations. T h e entire monograph is very well presented and very well covered. HENaY Wvcls. M.D.
TUMORS
1N C H I L D H O O D .
HENRY M. Cu~Eo a n d CARL W . RAIqD
Charles C. Thomas, Springfield, Ill., 1952, 2 2 4 pp. $5.75.
W e are indebted "to Doctors Cuneo and Rand for a beautiful presented and nicely organized account of their experiences in the field of children's tumors. The character of the tumors they have met and their results in dealing with them appear to have been substantially the same as those of others. Organized according to pathological t~pe, and presenting frequent photomicrooraphs of the tissue involved, the book appears somewhat like a resume in miniature of the larger works on the subject. For their denunciation of ventricular estimation, for the suggestion that papilloedema is apt to be associated with dilatation of the third or fourth x,entricle, or obstruction of the aqueduct of Sylvius rather than with increased intracranial pressure pet" se, and for their feeling that Macewen's sign is not due to the separated bones knocking together they are to be commended. Their explanation of head tilting is intriguing. Their use of vertebral angiography for choroid plexus tumors is valuable. As electroencephalography reveals little relative to other methods in subtentorial tumors, the book
necessarily contains littl which is of interest to electroencephalographers. The general statement that tumors beneath the tentorium frequently are associated with slow waves in the occipital lobes corresponds, I am sure, with the experience of all, T h e suggestion that such occipital waves are bilaterally synchronous does not entirely correspond to the reviewer's experience who has seen such waves on only one side and frequently, waves which are not synchronous .on the two sides and not of the same rate on the two sides. T h e implication that occipital waves at three and six per second have a peculiar significance for pressure beneath the tentorium is to be taken with caution. T h e reviewer has seen occipital waves at these frequencies in many conditions. Three per second waves upon closing the eyes are a common occipital finding in juvenile epileptics. T h e book although most interesting to the neurosurgeon and the pediatrician is not one which the electroencephalographer will urgently require. THF, ODOR~ J. CASE, M,D.
HISTORY OF NEUROLOGICAL
SURGERY
A. EARL WALKER
Williams and Wilkins, Baltimore, 1951, 583 pp., $12.00.
This is the only book of this type ever to have been written on the development of surgery of the nervous system. It begins with the presentation of the pre-historic neurological surgery when trephination of the human skulls for all mental diseases was commonly performed in Peru and Europe. T h e development of neurosurgery was very slow and remained at a standstill until late in the nineteenth century, when the modern neurological surgery was definitely established by pioneers, such as Horsley in England, Krause in Europe and Cushing in America. Subjects such as techniques of neurological surgery; the management of trauma; surgery of the
autonomic nervous system; psycho-surgery, etc. are individually presented. O f great interest to any one who is interested in the development of neurological surgery is the individual biography of the pioneers presented before each chapter. Readers are brought into close acquaintance with the life long struggling and contribution that they made for advancement of neurological surgery. There are five hundred and thirty-eight pages in this book and many interesting and valuable illustrations. T h e entire monograph is very well presented and very well covered. HENaY Wvcls. M.D.