Search

Prevention It has been predicted that physicians of the 21st century will be judged not so much by their ability to cure disease as by their ability to prevent disease.1Intervening in the absence of signs or symptoms of disease, however, is a troubling conundrum for the profession that aspires above all else to do no harm, as any clinician knows who has had to tell a healthy woman that her mammogram was "not normal." At times, knowing the benefit-risk ratio for a preventive intervention would seem to require the knowledge of a soothsayer. What clinicians use, instead, is the science of clinical epidemiology. The second edition of theGuide to Clinical Preventive Servicesis a handy compendium of this science as applied to clinical preventive medicine in 1996. The first edition,2published in 1989, was a landmark work, evaluating 169 preventive interventions and grading each on the

Hurst's the Heart, Companion Handbook , edited by Robert C. Schlant and Wayne Alexander, 538 pp, with illus, soft cover $27.50, ISBN 0-07-055469-2, New York, NY, McGraw-Hill, 1995. The new edition of Hurst's the Heart provides an updated reference source on cardiovascular disease. In order to provide focused, up-to-date reviews of the entire spectrum of clinical cardiology, the editors have divided the text into 143 chapters with more than 200 contributing authors. Chapters are grouped by clinical presentation, for example, coronary artery disease, valvular heart disease, congenital heart disease, and rhythm disorders. Within each category, the emphasis of specific chapters ranges from basic biochemistry and pathology through clinical diagnosis to medical and surgical management. This compendium of medical knowledge with its detailed reference lists will be most valuable to practicing clinicians, including general internists and subspecialists in cardiovascular disease. In using this text as a reference guide for clinical problems encountered

This is a good neurology text, a good fundamental reference of neurological facts and pearls. My first neurology text was the fifth edition ofMerritt, and what I liked then continues in this volume. It is thorough, facts about most neurological problems are easy to find, and they are presented in a predictable format. The writing is clear, and althoughMerritthas not been a single-author work since the sixth edition, the editor, Lewis Rowland, has generally succeeded in keeping the style uniform. Although the text does not have as much material as multivolume works likeClinical Neurology, edited by Joynt (formerly Baker and Baker), it is an authoritative compendium of the fundamentals of clinical neurology. This book is about as up-to-date as a textbook can be in such a dynamic field. A fine section on DNA diagnosis by Rowland begins, "We are still in the midst of the whirlwind

The Put Prevention Into Practice Education and Action Kit includes the Clinician's Handbook of Preventive Services and the various materials noted above, including prescription pads, Post-it notes, posters, chart stickers, and flow sheets. The kit was developed for the US Public Health Service's "Put Prevention Into Practice" campaign, with the specific intention of improving the delivery of preventive care by primary care physicians. Given a decade of public interest in healthy living and prevention, what are the barriers to the implementation of preventive practices in the primary care physician's office? Most physicians would say that the greatest barrier is time, since patients usually arrive at the office with issues of acute or chronic illness. Another important barrier is knowledge of which interventions are indicated for individual patients. The last comprehensive compendium of preventive practices, the US Preventive Services Task Force [USPSTF] Guide to Clinical Preventive Services , was published in 1989.

During the past 49 years, since the nuclear destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, both Japanese and US scientists have attempted to understand the medical and physical effects of those detonations. A major compilation of that work was published in 1992 as Genbaku Hoshasin no Jintai Eikyou (Effects of A-Bomb Radiation on the Human Body ). Because of the great length and scientific complexity of the compendium by 39 authors, making it incomprehensible for laypersons and others not involved in radiation research, this brief, simplified digest outlining major findings was written. The digest contains 12 chapters, a summary, a glossary, and three forewords. Each chapter outlines the major findings, with the first chapter providing the physical and mechanical damage data correlated with location and casualty estimates. Chapters 2 through 12 summarize and outline graphically the major findings related to malignant disease, endocrine and metabolic diseases, ocular lesions, dermatologic effects, chromosome aberrations, mutations

This new surgical textbook, which has over 2000 pages and weighs a hefty 12 lb, is an impressive compendium of information. I would first like to suggest to the publisher that it be divided into two volumes for easier handling. The subject matter is well presented overall, and the illustrations are well selected and useful. Why, however, the color plates representing soft-tissue lesions are bound into the section on cell structure and function is unfathomable. They would be best placed for reference in the section on skin and soft tissue. A large portion (500 pages) is devoted to the basic sciences of physiology and cellular biology as they relate to surgery and, in particular, to transplantation procedures. I found this information to be well presented and a valuable asset to the student and to the practicing surgeon to update his or her knowledge of these increasingly important aspects of surgical

The Pancreas is a compendium of current knowledge, concepts, and interpretations derived from advances in our understanding of the exocrine pancreas, its biology, functions, abnormalities, and disease. The name was changed from the first edition, The Exocrine Pancreas , and the book expanded to include six chapters recognizing the exocrine-endocrine interaction, anatomic and functional relationships, clinical disorders, and organ and islet transplantation. There is, however, minimal discussion of diabetes mellitus and other endocrine pathology. The six editors have assembled contributions from a large group of international experts chosen for their excellence as investigators, authors, and teachers to create a thick, oversized volume devoted to a single organ. It is similar in size to other authoritative organ system and general medical texts. The contents of the first half include anatomy, differentiation and development, exocrine secretion, and neurohumoral control and its effects on digestion. The authors have been encouraged to go beyond simply

Rating: 2 (0 = worse than a virus, 1 = harmless but useless, 2 = useful but klutzy, 3 = useful, 4 = better than most, 5 = I already bought mine). Last year, I reviewed theMedical Computing Resource Guide (MCRG)from Resource Systems Management Inc, using a 386 computer named Galen. This year I have taken a look atComputer Insight, MD (CIMD), a successor product from the same company. I evaluated it on Galen's successor, Merlin, a 486 DX2-66 with 8 MB of RAM, a 1024 × 768 SVGA graphics adapter with a 65 000 color palette, and a 340-MB hard disk running Windows for Workgroups. LikeMCRG, CIMDis a compendium of clinical computing information that aims to put computing knowledge into clinical hands. It packs information on 1000 clinically useful computer programs into two diskettes. It is available on both 3.5-inch and 5.25-inch disks. Expanded, it requires 3.18 MB of hard

The title of this useful and interesting British book from the Royal London Hospital is significantly misleading and may reflect more marketing department than editorial department influence at the publishing house. "Standards of care" is a field that has evolved, both in the United States and the United Kingdom, with very specific meanings in the medical-legal and quality assurance/quality improvement arenas, but which this book does not directly address. Anesthesia has been the unquestioned leader among medical specialties in implementing meaningful standards of practice, heightening the draw of the title. However, this book actually is a compendium of the authors' opinions about what constitute the basic minimum elements of modern anesthesia care. It almost could function as a reasonable basic text and will be suitable reading for anyone learning or reviewing anesthesiology. Further, the British slant itself is often interesting, at times appearing somewhat naive compared to 1992 US reality

This is the Homer Smith of the nineties, a book to make one think, question, and understand where we came from and where we are going. But it is essentially a reference book. Compared to most standard nephrology texts it has more emphasis on physiology and mechanisms and less on differential diagnosis and treatment. Physicians may therefore prefer to use a more clinical text and consult these volumes as needed to enlarge their understanding of basic principles and mechanisms. Underlying the thoughtful and unhurried rhythm of this compendium is its size. Since my review of the first edition in 1985, advances in molecular biology, recombinant DNA technology, and molecular cloning have brought about new insights into mechanisms taking place at cellular and molecular levels. Reflecting this expansion in knowledge, the number of pages has grown from 2200 to 3800. There are now 109 chapters in three volumes instead of 92

This book is a courageous attempt by the editors of The Epidemiology Monitor to gather in a single, 1100-page volume a comprehensive compendium of data sources, chiefly in the United States but also, to a limited extent, international, for epidemiologists. More timid souls might consider it an insurmountable task to be both comprehensive and selective in covering so disparate a range of subjects as: Advisory Groups; Agencies; Associations; Awards; Books; Bulletins; Catalogs; Companies; Consultants; Countries; Databases; Degree Programs; Directories; Fellowships; Funding Sources; Guidelines; Health Departments; Journals; Lectures; Legal Cases; Networks; Newsletters; Preventive Medicine Residency Programs; Recruiting Firms; Research Centers; Short Courses; Software; Special Training Programs; Summer Programs; Teaching Materials. The breadth and scope of the titles alone reflect a pervasive problem in this kind of publication: the critical role of terminology in guiding the reader to a desired entry. For example, one finds Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report under "Bulletins"

This text could appropriately be titled "Everything you ever wanted to know about antibiotic testing." It is a compendium of current knowledge on the in vitro evaluation of antibiotics, an invaluable resource for microbiology and specialty laboratory personnel, as well as physicians involved in anti-infective therapy. There are 26 chapters by 40 authors and over 5600 references. The format is similar to the previous editions, with new chapters on beta-lactam antibiotics and quinolones. Each chapter is clearly organized, easy to read, and filled with exquisite photographs and tables. The first nine chapters deal with susceptibility testing of antibiotics and of antituberculous, antifungal, and antiparasitic drugs. Each has a general discussion followed by a step-by-step description of the methodology (disk diffusion, agar media, liquid media, automation). They are so detailed, they could be used as a laboratory manual. Five chapters follow on specialized features of antibiotic testing, including protein binding and

Smells are surer than sounds and sights to make your heart-strings crack. —Rudyard Kipling So begins this thorough compendium of current knowledge of human chemosensation. While clearly the best work available on the topic, it suffers the inevitable shortcomings of such collections: with each chapter by a different author, there is a certain disjointedness and overlapping. The editors have overcome this to a degree by organizing the book into seven parts: "Neural Basis," "Psychophysical Integration," "Chemosensory Regulation of Behavior," "Clinical Problems," "Transport Disorders," "Sensorineural Disorders," and "Systemic Conditions." With the notable absence of Robert Henkin, the authors include the gurus of chemosensation. Overall, the work represents the best scientific writing in the field. Not that the volume is without problems. The chapter on depression and the chemical senses is years out of date, referring to Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-III criteria (1980) rather than the DSM-III-R (1987).

This is a valuable book for assessing nutrition in Third World countries. It is far less than the university-bound health scientist in his sanctum would want or use. This is a vade mecum for the field and the periphery. It is a veritable compendium for anthropometry, going far beyond mere pinching of fat folds. The physique of the book augurs well for its life span in the mildew and fungi of the tropics and the aridity of the desert. It is a review that will survive and be of continued value. There are good chapters on assessment from health statistics, ecological variables, interpretation in different age groups, methods of data collection, and, finally, planning and implementation. There are praiseworthy cautions about overly simplified interpretations. There are some handy suggestions for laboratory tests without elaborate apparatus. But alas, the implementation is about their methods and not about what to do. None

AIDS: Pathogenesis and Treatment is part of the Immunology Series published by Marcel Dekker under the direction of the editor-in-chief, Noel Rose. Jay Levy is the editor of this volume, which brings together reviews of the major topics relevant to the epidemiology, virology, pathology, and clinical manifestations of infections with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) types 1 and 2. The majority of the authors are members of the faculty at the University of California—San Francisco, but there are also contributions from Nathan Clumeck, who reviews the African situation; Warren Johnson and Jean Pape, who discuss the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome in Haiti; Arnold Robason, who contributes a chapter on the molecular virology of the retrovirus as a basis for designing therapy; and Maurice Hilliman, who describes efforts to develop a vaccine. This is a useful compendium of information regarding HIV disease. The chapter by Levy represents an extremely good review of the

This book edited by James H. Wood, MD, is a scholarly compendium of everything you wanted to know about cerebrospinal fluid. The chapters are written by recognized leaders in their particular fields. A good part of the book contains information of primary interest to persons who are doing research on spinal fluid or on particular diseases in which spinal fluid becomes altered. As a source book for them, it should prove invaluable. An example, chapter 18, "Immune Response in Human Cerebrospinal Fluid," contains a bibliography of 616 references. The clinician will find things of interest, especially toward the second half of the book in which are presented the CSF findings in the everyday conditions seen by neurologists and neurosurgeons. This is not the sort of book to buy for a personal library, unless one were primarily interested in CSF, but it is an excellent reference book for any library collection

To write a compendium of current topics in so rapidly evolving a field—both factually and conceptually—as immunology is a formidable task. Dr Schwartz has succeeded in his endeavor, operating as a reader to benefit his fellow readers, as he comments in the preface, and not as an immunology researcher. Not surprisingly, this compendium of immunology has its shortcomings. Some are apparently inevitable, such as length and repetition. Others are remediable, such as excessive redundancies that occasionally lead to confusion (eg, the terms "prozone" and "postzone" on pages 54 and 62), uneven balance between subjects, somewhat haphazard choice of references (some numbered and cited in the text, others not), and a weak cross-reference system within the Compendium . Most tables are informative, but many figures could have been eliminated (pages 3, 112, 133, 168, 304, and 324) or improved (pages 42, 63, 65, and 66). It would be impossible to detail

There is an ever-increasing interest in the basic physiology of neonatal pulmonary disease. Without understanding it one cannot provide optimal care of the neonate in respiratory distress. During the last two decades, a great deal has been learned about neonatal pulmonary physiology and disease. However, clinical application of acquired knowledge has begun to occur only recently. Although information regarding neonatal repiratory care has been published extensively in various journals and symposia, there is a need for a book completely devoted to the topic with particular emphasis on the practical aspects of this developing area of medicine. The editors of Neonatal Pulmonary Care have successfully put together a compendium of topics related to the respiratory care of the newborn. The book offers concise, lucid descriptions of basic physiology and then goes on to deal with clinical diagnosis, the evaluation of pulmonary function, and the roentgenographic description of pulmonary insufficiency. A special

As psychoanalysis gained its ascendency and moved the study of the mind away from biologic principles, a parallel movement was taking place: the application of new and exciting discoveries in a completely different field, immunology, to behavioral phenomena. Few of us who completed medical training 20 or more years ago understood that lymphocytes, antigens, antibodies, immune complexes, and other such components of immunologic equations would have an illuminating influence on our understanding of how the mind and brain respond to both internal and external factors. The very fact that Locke and Hornig-Rohan were able to gather close to 1,500 references from the world literature in this new and no longer exotic field of neuropsychoimmunology is a tribute to its growing importance and timeliness. This compendium is conveniently divided into several sections dealing with the neuroanatomy of the immune system and the immunology of the nervous system, including neurochemical influences on

The first Book of Lists was witty and novel, and it seems amazing that it appeared just a few years ago. Lists of all kinds have proliferated ever since. My daily newspaper carries lists with athletic overtones sent in by sports fans. The need to remember related data and the penchant for mnemonics make physicians a logical target for a compendium of lists. The compilers of this book have collected 187 lists, grouped them into ten sections, and published them as a portable paperback volume. They admit to paring down the potential lists that might have made the book ten times as large and hardly portable. This book, therefore, represents their selection, although they invite readers to send favorite lists for possible inclusion in future editions. One can readily think of lists of salient symptoms that permit syndromic diagnoses, but if all of these were to be included, the book

Ackerknecht believes that "the new era in medicine, beginning in the 1930's, is an era of therapeutics." In the 19th century some truly effective remedies appeared, such as synthetic drugs and the beginning of serum therapy and hormone therapy. Following this, the rapid progress in the 20th century is well known, but in the earlier periods the therapeutics comprised a melancholy story. Ackerknecht concentrates on the absurdities, lack of logic, magical practices, superstition, polypharmacy and bloodletting, with occasional grudging admiration for a few physicians, discussed in some detail. Unfortunately, Ackerknecht does not provide any sort of conceptual background or sense of development. The book is not really history , as many historians like to understand the term. Rather is the book a chronologically arranged compendium of facts and assertions (not always accurate) and criticisms (not always valid), all presented in a fashion quite condescending and supercilious towards earlier times. A few

In this volume Veatch has presented a well-knit review of the recent developments in the ethical and legal aspects surrounding the care of the dying person. He includes such topics as the definitions of death, lifeprolonging care of the moribund, the patient's rights to refuse treatment and to be informed of a fatal illness, and the medical uses of bodily parts. The book turns heavily (and somewhat repetitiously) on the various legal judgments derived from test cases in the different areas during the past two decades. The author perceives the subject as essentially a matter of law and makes a number of specific recommendations for legislation. He proposes, for example, a statutory definition of death (p 76) and a draft bill to permit refusal of medical treatment (p 199). As a readable compendium of these recent legal decisions pertaining to medical ethics in these areas, the book is extremely useful.

In 1983, the Tulane Educational Fund commissioned Professor John Duffy, a noted medical historian at the University of Maryland, to prepare a sesquicentennial history of the Tulane University Medical School. Professor Duffy, formerly Professor of Medical History at Tulane, has been widely acclaimed for his previous scholarly works, particularly his history of the 1853 yellow fever epidemic in New Orleans. In this volume, Duffy chronicles in detail the history of the Tulane University Medical School from its inception in 1834 as the Medical College of Louisiana to the present. Also included are brief histories of the School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, The Delta Regional Primate Center, and the University Health Service. The dates, personalities, and social situations have been meticulously researched and are presented chronologically in a style that makes the book so interesting that it reads almost like a novel. In historical terms, this is a compendium

Long awaited, this compendium of current thought in a rapidly developing area of medicine represents the eminently successful, unified effort of three distinguished editors, 85 renowned contributors, and a dedicated publishing house. The introductory chapters offer the basic considerations regarding injection of ionizing radiation into children. These chapters include radiobiology, dose calculation, instrumentation, and choice of appropriate radiopharmaceutical agents in a pediatric population. The clinical chapters are presented in traditional organ-oriented fashion and cover brain, cerebrospinal fluid, lung, heart, gastrointestinal tract, kidney, bone, and the hematopoietic and endocrine systems. Additional chapters are devoted to discussions of malignant disease, in vitro testing, and correlation with other imaging modalities. Explored in depth is the crucial question, to what extent radionuclides should be used in diagnosing diseases in children. Usually in nuclear medicine procedures, whole body doses are considerably greater than in plain radiographic examinations. However, very little direct information is available that

This long-awaited book is easy to read and conversational in tone; it reflects the author's concise logical approach to surgery. The book correlates and integrates Dr Flatt's numerous articles on congenital hand anomalies and summarizes his personal experience with more than 1,500 patients whose cases have been carefully analyzed and documented over several decades. The initial chapters on the role of reconstructive surgery, genetics and inheritance patterns, growth and kinesiology, and classification are written clearly and interspersed with appropriate diagrams and tables, making it an enjoyable introduction to the subject. The book is not intended to be an encyclopedic compendium of congenital hand anomalies with details of varieties of surgical techniques. Instead, it is personal and is supplemented by the author's dissections and documentations, as, for instance, in the anomalous anatomy seen in the radial clubhand, acrosyndactyly, complex syndactyly in Apert's syndrome, and thumb duplications. The photographs and illustrations are

The literature of multiple sclerosis is distinguished by several features: it is enormous; it is multidisciplinary, venturing into the fields of virology, immunology, clinical neurophysiology, neuropathology, experimental pathology, and psychology, to name just a few; it is controversial; and it has, unfortunately, led to little new in our understanding of its pathogenesis or etiology. Because of these problems, it is necessary from time to time, to attempt to collate, codify, and, if possible, clarify this vast amount of published and unpublished material. The authors of this latest attempt are eminently qualified to do just what is necessary and have assembled a group of experts from many centers to try to bring order to the chaos. The amount of information contained in this book is truly stupendous and it can unquestionably be called a state-of-the-art compendium. Many points of view are represented, many theories are discussed with candor and erudition, but

The papers that constitute this volume were presented and discussed at an international symposium on headache held in Florence, Italy, in 1980. One hundred thirteen contributors from 19 countries provided 54 chapters in this state-of-the-art compendium. The book has been divided into six sections, which deal with clinical aspects, serotonin and its role in the pathogenesis of migraine, the important, but yet still mysterious, role of opiate receptors in the brain, the interrelationship between headache and other functions, the possible role of platelet aggregation in the migraine syndrome, and clinical and preclinical pharmacology of migraine. Friedman's introductory chapter is a masterpiece of conciseness, common sense, and lucidity. As one might expect in this type of compilation, the quality of the contributions varies considerably: there are good discussions of the relationship between the endorphins and pain modulation, neuronal sensitivity, and opiate tolerance and dependence, as well as several interesting reports on

To the Editor.— I am referring to a letter to the editor in the issue of Dec 16, 1974, by Robert J. White of Cleveland (230:1512, 1974). The letter concerned a previous article about the author Anton Chekhov. I am quoting from his letter: "To give some idea of the truly monumental size of his correspondence, the last eight volumes of a 22-volume compendium of his works,..." The word "compendium" means a concise summary. Perhaps the ponderousness of the word itself leads many to use it erroneously to imply a huge encyclopedic collection. This is not the case. I think it is excellent for physicians to become interested in literature and the other liberal arts, but I do think that when we write about them, we should be exact in our wording. This may be a minor point, but the English language is being so debased gradually, that we may soon

This volume might be better subtitled, "All You Ever Wanted to Know About Pediatrics But Were Too Busy to Look Up." The soft-cover volume includes more than 500 pages of the kind of pediatric trivia that is of no consequence until it is needed, at which time it becomes crucial. Examples of this include tables of normal values for plasma pancreatic and salivary-type amylase, normal clitoral size in the newborn, size of gas-filled bowel loops in infants, and a table of 1,000 drug names that look alike or sound alike and therefore have the potential for causing confusion in telephoned prescriptions. A table of fast foods indicates the weight and kilocalorie and sodium content of fast foods by manufacturer; a hamburger from McDonald's can be compared with one from Burger King, a serving of shrimp with batter from Long John Silver's compared with a fish sandwich with cheese from Dairy

Alimentary Tract Radiologyis truly an encyclopedic work that encompasses the entire gamut of gastrointestinal radiology, including every disease entity and examination modality. More than 100 contributors have written 86 chapters. The work is divided into two volumes of approximately 1000 pages each. Like any compendium, it suffers from a diversity of styles and an unevenness in the detail and throughness of presentation. As an example, the chapter "Radiographic-Endoscopic Correlations in the Gastrointestinal Tract" receives only 18 pages, but the chapter "Infections and Infestations" receives 65 pages. The editors remark in the preface, "We are presenting subjects that are controversial and therefore require some duplication to present different points of view." This is somewhat of an understatement. There is a great deal of redundancy, not necessarily to present different points of view, but often merely restating the same point of view. Another disturbing feature is the practice of adding an

This is a basic overview of rheumatology, particularly for the medical student, resident, and nonrheumatologist. It is up-to-date, accurate, and is written by someone who understands both the basic mechanisms of rheumatologic disorders and practical principles of their treatment. It is chock-full of diagrams, tables, charts, and photographs. I would say that the graphics distinguish this book from other basic rheumatology texts. Although it is not nearly as sophisticated or complete as standard textbooks on the shelves of rheumatologists, it does have a useful place in providing accurate information to someone preparing for a board examination or reviewing rheumatology during a clerkship, or for internists, orthopedists, physiatrists, and family physicians. It is quite impressive that Dr Moll has written this compendium of rheumatology by himself, including not only many clinical chapters, but also sections on the major histocompatibility complex and immunogenetics, physiology of the synovium and cartilage, anatomy of the

Are house calls the province only of primary-care physicians—family physicians, general practitioners, internists, and/or pediatricians? The answer to this question is "No," according to Psychiatric House Calls , edited by John A. Talbott, MD, and Alan Z. A. Manevitz, MD. Of interest is the dust jacket, where "House Calls" is printed in large capitals, while above it "Psychiatric" appears in much smaller type. Is this mute evidence, common in psychiatry, of a simultaneous divorce from and reentry into the field of medicine? Psychiatric House Calls is an entertaining and lively compendium of anecdotal experiences of many physicians, most of whom are psychiatrists, with many of the authors making house calls early in their training or shortly after beginning practice. It is of more than passing interest to note that at the University of Maryland Medical School a program to teach house calls to fourth-year medical students is included in the curriculum

Bronchial Asthma, edited by M. Eric Gershwin, is an excellent compendium of up-to-date information concerning a common medical syndrome. The chapters in this wellwritten book span the total range of the illness, including pathophysiology, clinical manifestations, and treatment. The editor has also incorporated chapters on important and hard-to-find information such as epidemiology and psychological considerations. The chapters on immunology are complex but understandable. The medical diagnosis and treatment section is well organized and would be genuinely valuable to an active clinician. A specific allergy history and survey questionnaire is included. Pharmacology and pathophysiology are integrated quite well, and all aspects of asthma from childhood to adult, and even problems of pregnancy, are discussed. I believe that this book is a success. Current information is well referenced and presented in a concise, easily readable style. More importantly, each author is genuinely trying to teach the reader. The frequent use of tables

The 11th edition of this classic compendium of rheumatologic knowledge should be reviewed in the context of its intended audience (the specialist's reference shelf, library patrons, and the board-eligible fellowship graduate) and its competition ( Textbook of Rheumatology , by Kelley et al, 3rd ed, WB Saunders Co, 1989). As a framework for review, in addition to skimming the entire volume, 1(1) specifically looked up (in both books) the first five interesting topics that arose during rounds and (2) carefully read several scientific chapters as if I were a seminaive recent graduate studying for the internal medicine boards rite of passage. I expected the clinical chapters to be useful to the experienced as well as the recently trained clinician, whereas the basic science chapters should be oriented more toward the student, resident, or fellow. In the first category, I started with the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), which is given short shrift in

The Handbook of Medical Ethics is a compendium of fundamental concepts that have been developed as guidelines to the everyday practice of medicine in the United Kingdom. The majority of the materials discussed do not necessarily address ethical concepts as we have come to view them in the United States. The statement is made that these basically are guidelines for practice and are not codified in law as in many European countries. However, many of the issues covered in detail directly relate to legal guidelines, such as the relationship of etiquette to the law. This approach is interesting, because, in England, national standards do apply, especially in the initiation of practice in the National Health Service. In this section, the handbook actually addresses the problems concerning the location of the physician's office, directories, canvasing for patients, professional courtesy, and the "undisclosed sharing of fees." In addition, sections are included that

This reviewer customarily approaches titles beginning The Rights of ... with reluctance, since rights ordinarily imply corresponding obligations, and the latter are often glossed over in such discussions. The book at issue, however, is not a tract and seems reasonably balanced. It is one of a series on rights of various groups put out as a handbook of the American Civil Liberties Union. It is addressed to persons considered "health care providers" and presents an accurate, if basic, compendium of knowledge useful to them. The thesis appears to be that both providers and patients will be better off if the law regarding provider rights is understood. Most of the material focuses on physicians, usually in the hospital context; but sections devoted to nurses, technicians, and other personnel are very useful and flow from and relate to physician rights and decisions. The authors do not allow their bias—that the health care system's

The editor of this marvelous contribution notes in the introductory chapter that "the developing organism is in a dialogue with its environment." The reader can only develop a broader and more eclectic view of psychiatry in the enriching learning environment of this book. It is a balanced, terse, and relevant compendium by an imposing array of authors who have supported their material (in most cases) with an up-to-date bibliography. Dealing with populations "from the mouse to the grouse" to those who live in a house (no "cat in the hat" here), the exploration ranges from the synapse to the effect of social classes. The author of the section of neurophysiology reflects that "if the brain were simple enough for us to understand, we would be so simple that we couldn't." The authors simplify a diverse group of topics including psycholinguistics, EEGs, rating scales, genetics, and sleep. Aside from the overly

In assembling authoritative papers and excerpts from books on alcoholism and drug dependency, Dr Goby is giving the treatment field a one-volume wealth of information and guidance. The material has been selected and arranged strategically to cover the spectrum of this disease in a manner we have not seen before. The reader from any of the professions dealing with alcoholism will want to continue through this compendium with the dawning realization that his respective area of involvement—be it medical, mental, or spiritual—is interconnected with and affected by all the aspects of this multifaceted disease. While statistics are often dry and burdensome, numbers are necessary to present and analyze the awesomeness of alcoholism. The reader can find in Dr Goby's book figures, categories, percentages, and ratios that will require several readings to digest, but, since all authorities seem agreed that there is no such thing as a "typical alcoholic," the subject

For those working with the deaf and their families, this collection serves as a valuable reference guide. It contains several tables enumerating rehabilitation programs and training programs as well as postsecondary school collegiate programs and includes valuable information regarding admission officers, addresses, and even phone numbers. There are also references as to university programs for those who wish to work with the deaf. All who work with the deaf are counselors in some manner. Good counseling requires information and insight. This collection provides a good share of each. A very concise but most informative chapter is that relating to genetics and family planning. Those who come in contact with families of young deaf children will find excellent material and suggestions in several chapters, including a chapter on parents and one on preschool education. Although the contents of this book could not be considered a complete compendium, the selection of chapters

This book, published by the Society of Nuclear Medicine to commemorate its 25th anniversary, includes a compendium of some of the most important scientific papers leading to the development of nuclear medicine. The introduction by Marshall Brucer traces the important events that have been responsible for the growth of nuclear medicine, from the work of Prout on atomic weight in 1815 to the formation of the Society of Nuclear Medicine in 1954. The overview is written in the same interesting and easy-to-read style that Dr Brucer uses in his Vignettes in Nuclear Medicine series. Most of the volume is made up of the 31 papers selected by a distinguished panel of nuclear medicine scientists. These papers cover many significant discoveries that provide the fundamental background for the development of modern nuclear medicine. (Those papers originally published in another language have been translated into English.) With these papers their authors received

Drs Naeye and Tafari bring a pathological and a pediatric point of view, respectively, to this review of obstetric epidemiology drawn from three sources. The first is the Collaborative Perinatal Project (CPP), a prospectively collected data base drawn from 53,518 women and their children at 12 university-affilitated medical centers in the United States from 1959 to 1966. The second is a study from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, in progress since 1974, and the third is a study of pregnancy outcome among the Zulus of South Africa. The union of these three sources of data is awkward and adds little to the text. This is primarily a review of CPP data and a compendium of Dr Naeye's previously published articles based on the CPP data, with a little African data thrown in. That the authors are not obstetricians is at once the best and worst thing about this book. The CPP data

The Ciba collection of medical illustrations, by Frank H. Netter, MD, and a host of illustrious editors, is truly a gigantic undertaking. This latest publication, volume 6, dealing with kidneys, ureter, and bladder, is printed beautifully, and the illustrations are of the quality, nature, and originality that have distinguished Dr. Netter's career as a medical illustrator. The scope of the book is enormous, ranging from anatomy and embryology through therapeutics, including dialysis and transplantation. Of course, in any such undertaking, the text, although quite accurate, is quite limited and superficial, with no single area dealt with in any detail. Thus, the audience for which this book has been created is not clear. Clearly, it is not detailed enough for the nephrologist or clinican interested in renal disease, nor detailed enough for the medical student. Thus, although the compendium is attractively bound and expertly illustrated, it would appear to me that

This, the 15th edition of Todd and Sanford , is the second edited by Israel Davidsohn and John Bernard Henry. Davidsohn and Henry had expanded the scope of the book, previously limited, by obtaining authors whose chapters have covered almost all areas of laboratory medicine. This new edition maintains the place of this book as the best reference in modern laboratory medicine. The book as a whole is a compendium of methodologies, but each chapter provides good discussion of basic mechanisms, clinical relevance, and the basis for clinical interpretations of the laboratory tests. It will be particularly useful to residents and laboratory directors who can read it prior to their consultations with the clinicians. It will be useful to clinicians to provide the basis for their clinical interpretations. Students of medicine and technology will generally find it too lengthy and detailed for everyday use but will find it a useful reference.

The second edition of this major compendium of systemic pathology written by British authors will appear in four volumes. This, the first to be published, covers the cardiovascular system, the upper airways, and the lungs. Although the chapters show considerable variation in approach, all are of generally high quality. The general impact of the work is one of a comprehensive presentation of disease entities, illustrated by their morphological changes and discussed in terms of pathogenesis and clinical correlation. The chapter on the heart is a revision of the late Dr G. Payling Wright's presentation in the first edition and is a superlative memorial to him. The large section on the lungs is one of the finest general discussions of the pathology and abnormal physiology of pulmonary disease available today, barring specialized extended studies. Crawford on arteries, veins, and lymphatics and Porter on hypertension offer well-thought-out presentations. The sections on the

In recent years, dialysis has become a highly successful form of treatment, and success breeds big books—hence this compendium of 945 pages, a veritable monument to the progress of science, in which 78 contributors have assembled everything known before 1982 about replacing renal function. In 49 unequal and often overlapping chapters, they unfold the story of how the artificial kidney evolved from its humble beginnings to become a sophisticated system to which more than 150,000 people in the world presently owe their lives. The book has a distinctly international flavor, with half of the contributors coming from America and the rest from England, Europe, or Australia. It also has a judicious blend of the old and new generations, lending it a sense of excitement, perhaps best captured in the senior editor's chapters on the history of dialysis. On the whole, the book is well written and easy to read. It

This book was first published in 1955 and represents a monumental compendium of worldwide information on occupational diseases. Through the process of regularly updating the contents, the author has made it a viable reference source. Those who are interested in this special field or desire more definitive information will need to pursue more detailed references. The text is written in a most fascinating manner, with stories and anecdotes intermingled with the scientific information. When consulting the book, the reader would be well advised to discipline himself, as he might suddenly realize that he had strayed far afield from his original interest. It is next to impossible to identify an occupation that is not considered. Some conditions unrelated to occupation are described because they may generate leads as to what may occur in industry. It is obvious that the author has an unusual depth of knowledge and interest in the socioeconomic

This is the latest edition of a compendium that has followed the same format for the past 32 years. Each year, the editor and consulting editors assign more than 280 diseases to a new panel of experts, none of whom covers more than one condition. Thus, each topic is new each year, giving the personal practices and preferences of the current authority. Emphasis may differ from the previous year, but a strong thread of recommendations is carried throughout. The average length of articles is 3 1/2 pages. Emphasis in each is primarily on treatment, including the general approach to management, drug therapy, surgery, and radiology. The old and the new are considered thoughtfully, and specific recommendations are usually given. Prevention is often emphasized. No references are cited. The breadth and depth of coverage are appropriate to the problems of the generalist or the specialist outside of his usual realm. It

Human speech and language hold a special fascination for all scientists. Speech is the most distinctive function differentiating Homo sapiens as a species. Verbal communication is the most complex neuromotor activity of which we are capable. It challenges the limits of our comprehension to envision the sequence of biochemical and physiological events involved in calling up instantaneously each of the subsegments of speech from their central nervous system storage locations, lining them up coherently, and expressing them audibly with subtle intonations and other modifying features that convey information and emotion. When did human beings first develop speech and language beyond the range of gutteral, animal sounds? The answer may be discoverable through studies of the evolution of the human vocal tract, and this book is a compendium of the best information available on this subject. The story unfolds through an integration of important discoveries from such disciplines as embryology, developmental