Thyroid Diseases

Abstract

Despitetheavailabilityofanumberofendocrinetextbooks,webelievethatthereisa need for a comprehensive volume on the thyroid, which can be used by trainees, general endocrinologist, and experts inthe field alike. The present one, availableas a book, but also electronically, and intended to be updated online whenever developments warrant this, in our minds fills a void. Covering the majority of clinically relevant phenotypes, and thyroid physiology as well as pathogenesis, diagnosis, and treatment, we have been fortunate to profit from the dedicated service of anumber of recognized and authoritative experts. Challengingly, being the first in a series of volumes intended to eventually cover all of endocrinology, there has been little precedence to learn from and to use as a point de référence. The original idea for this volume was nurtured in the garden of the Italian Society of Endocrinology and was then developed together with another European as co-editor. The cutting-edge information is provided by a bouquet of mainly European colleagues but also some from the USA, Canada, and Australia. With this in mind, we can only hope that the many instruments, or at least their players, orchestrated a tune that to the readers appears as one harmonious melody and not a cacophony of contradictions and overlaps. The two conductors have agreed and followed the same score, and a strong friendship has developed over the nearly 3 years from conception to delivering a final product.