The authors have gladly responded to the long-held wish of the publisher for a textbook on the specific therapy of internal and neurological diseases. They are convinced that such a book, written by doctors for doctors and students, truly meets a need. This is justified on one hand by the undoubtedly significant and rapid advances that recent years have brought us, particularly in therapeutic terms, and on the other hand by the necessity of a critical evaluation of these successes, especially those related to pharmacological treatment. For there is no area of practical medicine where serious criticism is more appropriate than in the therapeutic influence on diseases and patients. We need not elaborate on why this is the case. Our book aims to serve the practicing physician. Therefore, it intentionally refrains from...