Page:Archives of dermatology, vol 6.djvu/427

 AMERICAN DERMATOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION. 415

matter of Dr. Piffard's book you are so familiar that any attempt of an exposition of tlie same on my part would be altogether super- fluous. Simultaneously with this work there appeared the first part of the writer's "atlas of skin diseases,"* designed to illustrate in chromolithography the commoner diseases of the skin as encoun- tered in this country. It was announced with the first part that the atlas when completed would consist of from eight to ten parts, each containing four plates with explanatory text. To the present time seven parts have been issued.

There still remains a dermatological work to be noticed, namely, a small treatise on diseases of the skin, by Dr. S. Lilienthal,f a dis- cii)le of Hahnemann. The work lacks both personal observation and originality. In it we find the dermatologists of the day, notably Hebra and Wilson, closely followed, the former indeed being quoted on almost every page, so often and at such length that one is tempted to regard the volume in the light of a homoe- pathic edition of Hebra-.

In September, 1876, the memorable event of the International Medical Congress took place in Philadelphia, whereat dermatology received such recognition from the profession as to place it for the first time on a plane with the other important specialties of medi- cine. The section of dermatology and syphilography called forth much interest on the part of our leading dermatologists, as well as several articles of a high order. Among these I would especially mention the elaborate paper by Dr. White, on "variations in type and in prevalence of diseases of the skin in different countries of equal civilization, "| in which occurs a large amount of valuable sta- tistical information. The tables showing the comparative frequency of the more common diseases in American and European dispensary and private practice are of especial interest. Those exhibiting the relative frequency of certain rare forms of disease in dispensary and private practice in America and Europe are also valuable, although in my opinion they are compiled from material too limited to afford an idea of the actual frequency of these diseases. I venture to re- mark that, with the increase of knowledge and refinement of diag- nosis in skin diseases which is now spreading so rapidly throughout all countries, the list of the rare diseases of the present day will from year to year become markedly larger.

Of the other papers presented, that of Bulkley, entitled, "are eczema and psoriasis local diseases of the, skin, or are they manifes- tations of constitutional disorders ?"§ must be mentioned. The communications of Dr. Enders, in charge of the government asylum for lepers on the island of Molokai, on " leprosy as observed in the Sandwich Islands,"]] in which it was stated that the disease could be inoculated and communicated, like syphilis, in vaccination, but that

t New York, 1876. + Trans, of the International Med. Congress, Phila., 1877. Ibid. II Ibid.
 * Philadelphia, 1876.