Injury (1989) 20, 247-248 Printed in Great Britain 247

Book reviews

Paediatric Emergencies: Diagnosis and Management. C. J. Bacon and W. H. Lamb. 186 x 123 mm. Pp. 326. 1988. London: Heinemann Professional Publishing. 514.95.

This excellent book, first published under a different title in 1982, has been slightly expanded and greatly improved by new and up-to-date material. As before, it is divided into sections according to the system involved, with special sections for ‘Neonatal

Emergencies’, ‘Parents’ (the worried parent, child abuse, cot death), T’oisoning’, ‘Procedures’ and ‘Useful Data’. A helpful addition has been the insertion at appropriate places, of ‘Tropical Points’ which

remind the reader about conditions such as malaria, cholera, intestinal obstruction for ascariasis, and sickle-cell anaemia; obvi- ously many of these ‘Tropical Points’ apply equally to children in Britain who have visited or lived in the tropics, or at risk from sickle-cell disease.

Inevitably there are some omissions: there should surely be some mention of lead encephalopathy in spite of its virtual disappearance in this country, and the effects on the newborn of maternal drug usage should have been included. The test

described for Paraquat is not the standard one and is not approved by the makers, ICI. Minor criticisms are: an inconsistency in the use of ‘adrenogenital syndrome’ in one place and ‘adrenal hyperplasia’ (a better term) elsewhere. There is an undue emphasis on males in G6PD deficiency when severely deficient homozygous females are quite common. I would have liked some mention of the importance of maintaining a sitting forward position (preferably on the mother’s knee) in epiglottis. On page 102 Peter Jones’ initials are given incorrectly, and on page 204 there is a reference to a mystery journal called ‘JACEP’. (Further research identified it as the Journal of the American College of Emergency Physicians).

I strongly recommend this book for junior paediatric staff, and for all types of accident and emergency departments.

J. Black

Nerve Injury and Repair. Professor Goran Lundborg. Pp. 222. 1988. Edinburgh and London: Churchill Livingstone. f 50.00.

Nerve injury is a major problem in trauma, particularly of the hand. It is a subject well recognized, yielding better results in the hands of experts and of those prepared to devote time and effort to details of surgery. Nevertheless, many surgeons have trained with the relatively elementary concept of neural physiology and pathology. Advances in the past two decades have added considerably to our understanding of nerve function.

This volume will therefore provide an excellent opportunity for

the practising surgeon to up-date his knowledge of basic physio- logy and its application to the clinical situation. The first half of this book is devoted to basic physiology and is divided into cellular physiology, the anatomy and functioning of the nerve trunks, and the effects of compression and stretching. There is good cover of the microcirculation of nerves not often found elsewhere. The second half of the book is also divided into three parts and covers the clinical aspects of nerve entrapments, nerve regeneration, and

0 1989 Butterworth & Co (Publishers) Ltd 0020-1383/89/04024742 $03.00

nerve repair. Each of these subjects is covered with a heavy emphasis on clinically relevant information.

Professor Lundborg has a foot in each of the two camps of basic research and clinical practice. He has produced an excellent book which distils information in each field which is a relevance to the other. Illustrations and diagrams are comprehensive and of the highest quality. References are very full. The book is highly recommended and will be equally valuable for the Surgeon

wishing to up-date his knowledge of nerve physiology and to the surgical resident needing to require a good basic knowledge for future practice and present examination.

J. Plewes

Recent Advances in Surgery-13. Edited by Pp.318. 1988. Edinburgh: Churchill Livingstone. f 17.50.

The role of the Recent Advances series is to highlight areas of surgical advancement due to changes in scientific foundation or clinical practice, a brief it fulfils admirably. A broad spectrum of disciplines is covered with emphasis placed on conceptual rather than specific changes, thus maintaining an interest for all.

This volume is a worthy addition to the series covering a wide

range of specialist areas. For the general surgeon, should such an individual exist these days, recent advancements in breast cancer management and screening, paediatric, gastroenterology, the treatment of a perforated ulcer and primary or secondary hepato- biliary tumours are described, as is the detailed management of intestinal fistulae and acute diverticulitis. In vascular surgery the

state of the art in stroke prevention and femoropopliteal bypass is well presented, whilst in urology the management of genito- urinary malignancy is discussed with a well presented overview of the ever-changing management of renal calculus disease. The chapters on intraoperative radiotherapy and laser surgery should be of general interest.

For the orthopaedic surgeon and those with an interest in traumatology there is a superb review of the management of major injury by Professor Rowlands from Belfast which should be essential reading for all surgeons regardless of specialty. The chap- ter on advances in pain control will also be useful. New develop- ments in plastic surgery is well written and beautifully presented and left me eagerly awaiting the sequel.

Irrespective of discipline, the chapter on audit which has shown a recent resurgence and is becoming of increasing importance in day-to-day surgical practice is relevant to all. The chapter entitled ‘Lessons from the Large Bowel Cancer Project’ was a delight to read and will be of use to any surgeon setting up a prospective multicentre study.

This series remains essential reading for surgeons at all levels, whatever the specialty, in order to keep abreast of recent develop- ments and to beware of contentious areas, so beloved of exami- ners. A series I thoroughly recommend without reservation.

M. Winslet