From the Heart to the Brain

During the last two decades, interoception has become a new field of interdisciplinary research. This has attracted the attention of psychologists, physiologists and physicians alike. Information emanating from the inner organs, such as the heart or the blood vessels, have impact upon a person's daily behavior. This international, interdisciplinary compilation of chapters presents basic scientific data on the neural pathways transmitting the information from the heart to the brain, on the perception of normal and deviant heart actions, as well as on the complex interplay between cardiac events and emotions. In addition, this volume also includes the application of current knowledge about interoception to clinical work in internal medicine and psychiatry.