Gale's addition to its stable of health resources fills a gap in consumer health collections by providing much-needed current information about disorders of one of the most complex systems of the human body. The two consecutively paged volumes contain approximately 400 signed, alphabetical entries. The authors are health-care professionals and medical writers. The articles cover diseases (Batten disease, Rasmussen's encephalitis); syndromes (Lennox-Gastaut syndrome, Tourette syndrome); drugs (Antimigraine medications, Valporic acid and divalproex sodium); treatments (Acupuncture, Radiation); therapies (Craniotomy, Bodywork therapies); and diagnostic equipment and devices (Electronic personal assistive mobility devices, CT scan). There are also entries for anatomical and physiological topics such as Cerebral circulation and common symptoms such as dizziness.

We all recognize a special capacity that humans have—some more so than others—to connect with others in a deep and direct way. We see this quality expressed by a performer revving a crowd, a doctor healing a patient or a mother putting a child to sleep. To orchestrate these tasks, a person must sense and stimulate the reactions and mood of another.

Glutamate is the major excitatory neurotransmitter in the brain and dysfunction of glutamate transmission is the likely cause of a variety of diseases including neurodegeneration following cerebral ischemia, Huntington's chorea, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, epilepsy, spasticity, emesis, chronic pain, and schizophrenia. Excitatory amino acid receptor agonists and antagonists are therefore of major interest as potential drugs for central nervous system disorders. Excitatory Amino Acids is the first book entirely dedicated to the results of human testing of modulators of excitatory amino acid neurotransmitters.

Features include:
* Coverage of the field of excitatory amino acids from synaptic function to preclinical and clinical pharmacology
* Description of the development of NMDA (Nmethyl-d-aspartate) and non-NMDA antagonists
* Reports of potential drugs in early and late clinical stages of development.