The Side Effects of Drugs Annual was first published in 1977. It has been published continuously since then, as a yearly update to the encyclopaedic volume Meyler's Side Effects of Drugs. Each new Annual provides clinicians and medical investigators with a reliable and critical yearly survey of new data and trends in the area of Adverse Drug Reactions and Interactions. An international team of specialists have contributed to the Annuals by selecting from each year's publications all that is truly new and informative, by critically interpreting it, and by pointing out whatever is misleading. The use of the book is enhanced by separate indexes, allowing the reader to enter the text via the drug name, adverse effect, or drug interaction. Special features of the Annuals are the Side Effects of Drugs Essay, usually written by a guest author, and the special reviews: short articles, within the different chapters, that give extra attention to topics of current interest. The Essay in Annual 27 is entitled 'The General Practice Research Database' (by Dr. H. Jick) and there is a Historical Essay entitled 'Louis Lewin - Meyler's Predecessor' (by Dr. J.K. Aronson). The special reviews in this volume include, among others: The effects of NSAIDs on blood pressure Risks of inhaled corticosteroids in children Leukotriene receptor antagonists and Churg-Strauss syndrome Amiodarone and thyroid disease Surveillance of adverse events following immunization Smallpox vaccination Safety aspects of folic acid Inhibitors of topoisomerase I and topoisomerase II Liver damage from kava kava