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Surprise and delight were the reactions of this reviewer on noting the publication of the ninth edition of Infectious Diseases of Children. Seven years had elapsed since the previous revision, a longer gestation than any of its predecessors. I had incorrectly surmised that the proliferation of medical literature, especially of infectious disease texts and journals, had led to the demise of this oft-cited comparison. How wonderful to be proven wrong! Thirty-four years ago, the stated purpose of this book was "to provide a concise and handy description of certain common infectious diseases of children." The same goals have been delineated and achieved in this new edition, albeit now in the format of a multiauthored compendium. The text has been completely reorganized and updated, and important new diseases and new information about old diseases have been added.
Topics discussed in the 36 chapters range from the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, infections in