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Acute respiratory distress syndrome: A comprehensive approach1
The Journal of Emergency Medicine, Vol. 19, No. 3, p. 303, 2000 Copyright © 2000 Elsevier Science Inc. Printed in the USA. All rights reserved 0736-4679/00 $–see front matter
PII S0736-4679(00)00224-9
Book and Other Media Reviews
e ACUTE RESPIRATORY DISTRESS SYNDROME: A COMPREHENSIVE APPROACH, By JA Russel and KR Walley. New York, Cambridge University Press, 1999, 356 pages, paperback, $49.95.
tled, “Clinical assessment and total patient care.” This chapter is a great overview of how to care for the critically ill patient and would be a great outline for a resident starting an Intensive Care Unit (ICU) rotation. The chapter “Mechanical ventilation” is an excellent review of ventilators, their use, and common problems that arise with a ventilated patient. I felt the chapter “Respiratory muscles and liberation from mechanical ventilation” to be less useful and somewhat confusing. The chapter references are complete and up to date. The editors have done an excellent job of maintaining consistency among the various authors and chapters, not an easy task in a multiauthored text. Although not aimed at the Emergency Physician, this work contains an abundance of important information useful in caring for the critically ill patient and preventing, recognizing, and treating ARDS. There is a movement towards Emergency Physicians taking on the role of Critical Care specialists. I find that my time is increasingly spent in caring for critical patients while the ICU is full and books such as this are important additions to my reading list. While I enjoy reading books such as this on shock or heart failure or coma, I have a difficult time sitting down and reading a major text on critical care. In summary, this is an excellent book and I highly recommend it to physicians or nurses caring for critical patients whether in the Emergency Department or ICU setting.
Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) was first described in 1967 and was called Adult Respiratory Distress Syndrome to distinguish it from the pediatric variety. The actual syndrome, although described in the 1960s as Danang lung or shock lung in association with trauma, was recognized as an entity in World Wars I and II. Later, many other entities, including pneumonia, sepsis, and gastric aspiration were shown to cause a similar condition. ARDS is a significant medical challenge of the 21st century because it usually involves younger patients, has a mortality rate of 40 – 60%, and consumes millions of health care dollars. The authors of this work have attempted to consolidate what is known about ARDS into a relatively compact and readable text. They have 22 contributors from the United States and Canada who are experts in critical care, surgery, pulmonary medicine, and pathology. The book is arranged logically and its 14 chapters cover an overview of ARDS, epidemiology, pathology, assessment, management, complications, and outcome. The text is in single-column format on nonglossy paper. I prefer this type of text for highlighting and making marginal notes. The chapters are well written and concise. Most of the tables and illustrations are useful and enhance the text. I particularly enjoyed the chapter enti-
Edward J. Otten, MD Professor of Emergency Medicine and Pediatrics University of Cincinnati Cincinnati, Ohio
Book and Other Media Reviews is coordinated by Edward J. Otten, MD, of the University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio
303
PII S0736-4679(00)00224-9
Book and Other Media Reviews
e ACUTE RESPIRATORY DISTRESS SYNDROME: A COMPREHENSIVE APPROACH, By JA Russel and KR Walley. New York, Cambridge University Press, 1999, 356 pages, paperback, $49.95.
tled, “Clinical assessment and total patient care.” This chapter is a great overview of how to care for the critically ill patient and would be a great outline for a resident starting an Intensive Care Unit (ICU) rotation. The chapter “Mechanical ventilation” is an excellent review of ventilators, their use, and common problems that arise with a ventilated patient. I felt the chapter “Respiratory muscles and liberation from mechanical ventilation” to be less useful and somewhat confusing. The chapter references are complete and up to date. The editors have done an excellent job of maintaining consistency among the various authors and chapters, not an easy task in a multiauthored text. Although not aimed at the Emergency Physician, this work contains an abundance of important information useful in caring for the critically ill patient and preventing, recognizing, and treating ARDS. There is a movement towards Emergency Physicians taking on the role of Critical Care specialists. I find that my time is increasingly spent in caring for critical patients while the ICU is full and books such as this are important additions to my reading list. While I enjoy reading books such as this on shock or heart failure or coma, I have a difficult time sitting down and reading a major text on critical care. In summary, this is an excellent book and I highly recommend it to physicians or nurses caring for critical patients whether in the Emergency Department or ICU setting.
Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) was first described in 1967 and was called Adult Respiratory Distress Syndrome to distinguish it from the pediatric variety. The actual syndrome, although described in the 1960s as Danang lung or shock lung in association with trauma, was recognized as an entity in World Wars I and II. Later, many other entities, including pneumonia, sepsis, and gastric aspiration were shown to cause a similar condition. ARDS is a significant medical challenge of the 21st century because it usually involves younger patients, has a mortality rate of 40 – 60%, and consumes millions of health care dollars. The authors of this work have attempted to consolidate what is known about ARDS into a relatively compact and readable text. They have 22 contributors from the United States and Canada who are experts in critical care, surgery, pulmonary medicine, and pathology. The book is arranged logically and its 14 chapters cover an overview of ARDS, epidemiology, pathology, assessment, management, complications, and outcome. The text is in single-column format on nonglossy paper. I prefer this type of text for highlighting and making marginal notes. The chapters are well written and concise. Most of the tables and illustrations are useful and enhance the text. I particularly enjoyed the chapter enti-
Edward J. Otten, MD Professor of Emergency Medicine and Pediatrics University of Cincinnati Cincinnati, Ohio
Book and Other Media Reviews is coordinated by Edward J. Otten, MD, of the University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio
303