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Anatomy and physiology: Applied for orthopaedic nurses
360
Injury, 4, 360-361
Book Reviews Anatomy and Physiology: Applied for Orthopaedic Nurses. Third edition. By J. W. ROWE, s.R.N., s.c.M., o.N.c.,Senior Tutor Diploma (London), and V. H. WHEBLE, M.A., B.M., B.CH. (OXON.), F.R.C.S.(EDIN.), Dip. Med. Col. (Antwerp). S&X lo+ in. Pp. 698, with 337 illustrations. 1972. Edinburgh and London: Churchill Livingstone. 63.00. _ It is not clear why this book includes in its title the words ‘applied for orthopaedic nurses’ because it contains a great deal of information about the entire body, and not mainly about the locomotor system. For the newcomer to anatomy and physiology the opening chapter, which deals with the minute structure of the cell would surely be daunting. Later chapters would be for the most part reassuring, and for those that stay the course there is a useful section of 61 pages that deals with regional anatomy, and can be regarded as a form of revision. There is already a vast amount of information in this book but one may wonder whether the burden of terminology would be eased by indicating the derivation of words taken from Latin and Greek: this can add interest as well as assisting memory. Some of the passages could be clearer and a few simple and homely analogies might assist understanding. Some of the line diagrams are much too crowded and the manner of labelling may well cause confusion. X-ray appearances are included, but only towards the end and without labelling; they could usefully figure more prominently and in conjunction with corresponding line diagrams. Having read the definition of varus and valgus in the glossary one may ask which way an angle faces. There are a few errors of fact and spelling in this book which will perhaps be most useful as a work of reference for the really interested and able nurse, who may then find that in some respects her knowledge exceeds that of the doctors. H. B. STONER
Early Care of the Injured Patient. By COMMITTEE ON TRAUMA, AMERICAN COLLEGE OF SURGEONS. 6$x 99 in. Pp. 44l+ix, with 203 illustrations. 1972. Philadelphia: Saunders. f3.85. This book is the successor to ‘The Management of Fractures and Soft Tissue Injuries ’ and it provides a wealth of information and sound practical advice over the whole range of injuries, including rape and burns. It is written clearly and simply; the illustrations are simple line diagrams but not all of them add to the information contained in the text. The fact that the book has had many authors is reflected in unevenness
of presentation of the different subjects and in the amount of detail provided. Much of what is recommended is widely accepted but it is regrettable to read that greenstick fractures in children’s forearms should be completed; to see that the dislocated elbow should first be hvperextended. and that skeletal traction is accepted for some injuiies of the hands and feet. It is no longer universally accepted that wounds that enter the peritoneal cavity warrant exploratory laparotomy, and there are those that would condemn urethrography and, more so, primary repair of the torn prostatic urethra. One may question the propriety of opening the dura mater in search of subdural blood without, apparently, regard to its colour and tension. It is remarkable that there is no reference to flap tracheostomy, nor to the possibility of damage to the spinal cord without recognizable bony damage. One of the most thoughtful sections is the introduction to fractures, in which the effects of fractures, the way in which fractures heal, and the fact that plaster-of-Paris does not necessarily immobilize fractures are dealt with in an unusually simple but striking way. The attitude to internal fixation is sensible and restrained and states its allegiance to the views of Dr. Clay Ray Murray. Among the disappointing chapters are those that deal with injuries of nerves and blood-vessels, which could have been made much more useful without being made much longer. The comprehensiveness of this book and its relative brevity mean that it can offer only general guidance, which it does very well. It is most likely to be useful in Britain to those who are going to work in accident and emergency departments and require either a genera1 introduction to the subject or a comprehensive summary. It can, therefore, be recommended for clinical assistants and newly appointed casualtv consultants whose principal interests had lain elsewhere. The candidate for Fellowshio of a Roval College of Surgeons should find all tie information that his examiners are likely to require, although they might not agree with it all. P. S. LONDON Reconstructive Surgery and Traumatology, Volume 13. Edited by G. CHAPCHAL 7 x IO in. Pp. 209+ix, with 96 illustrations. Basle: S. Karger. f10.80. Only about one-third of this book is likely to be of any interest to the accident surgeon; the rest deals with the surgical and allied treatment of the effects of cerebral palsy, a postulated cause of scoliosis, and some metabolic aspects of that condition.
Injury, 4, 360-361
Book Reviews Anatomy and Physiology: Applied for Orthopaedic Nurses. Third edition. By J. W. ROWE, s.R.N., s.c.M., o.N.c.,Senior Tutor Diploma (London), and V. H. WHEBLE, M.A., B.M., B.CH. (OXON.), F.R.C.S.(EDIN.), Dip. Med. Col. (Antwerp). S&X lo+ in. Pp. 698, with 337 illustrations. 1972. Edinburgh and London: Churchill Livingstone. 63.00. _ It is not clear why this book includes in its title the words ‘applied for orthopaedic nurses’ because it contains a great deal of information about the entire body, and not mainly about the locomotor system. For the newcomer to anatomy and physiology the opening chapter, which deals with the minute structure of the cell would surely be daunting. Later chapters would be for the most part reassuring, and for those that stay the course there is a useful section of 61 pages that deals with regional anatomy, and can be regarded as a form of revision. There is already a vast amount of information in this book but one may wonder whether the burden of terminology would be eased by indicating the derivation of words taken from Latin and Greek: this can add interest as well as assisting memory. Some of the passages could be clearer and a few simple and homely analogies might assist understanding. Some of the line diagrams are much too crowded and the manner of labelling may well cause confusion. X-ray appearances are included, but only towards the end and without labelling; they could usefully figure more prominently and in conjunction with corresponding line diagrams. Having read the definition of varus and valgus in the glossary one may ask which way an angle faces. There are a few errors of fact and spelling in this book which will perhaps be most useful as a work of reference for the really interested and able nurse, who may then find that in some respects her knowledge exceeds that of the doctors. H. B. STONER
Early Care of the Injured Patient. By COMMITTEE ON TRAUMA, AMERICAN COLLEGE OF SURGEONS. 6$x 99 in. Pp. 44l+ix, with 203 illustrations. 1972. Philadelphia: Saunders. f3.85. This book is the successor to ‘The Management of Fractures and Soft Tissue Injuries ’ and it provides a wealth of information and sound practical advice over the whole range of injuries, including rape and burns. It is written clearly and simply; the illustrations are simple line diagrams but not all of them add to the information contained in the text. The fact that the book has had many authors is reflected in unevenness
of presentation of the different subjects and in the amount of detail provided. Much of what is recommended is widely accepted but it is regrettable to read that greenstick fractures in children’s forearms should be completed; to see that the dislocated elbow should first be hvperextended. and that skeletal traction is accepted for some injuiies of the hands and feet. It is no longer universally accepted that wounds that enter the peritoneal cavity warrant exploratory laparotomy, and there are those that would condemn urethrography and, more so, primary repair of the torn prostatic urethra. One may question the propriety of opening the dura mater in search of subdural blood without, apparently, regard to its colour and tension. It is remarkable that there is no reference to flap tracheostomy, nor to the possibility of damage to the spinal cord without recognizable bony damage. One of the most thoughtful sections is the introduction to fractures, in which the effects of fractures, the way in which fractures heal, and the fact that plaster-of-Paris does not necessarily immobilize fractures are dealt with in an unusually simple but striking way. The attitude to internal fixation is sensible and restrained and states its allegiance to the views of Dr. Clay Ray Murray. Among the disappointing chapters are those that deal with injuries of nerves and blood-vessels, which could have been made much more useful without being made much longer. The comprehensiveness of this book and its relative brevity mean that it can offer only general guidance, which it does very well. It is most likely to be useful in Britain to those who are going to work in accident and emergency departments and require either a genera1 introduction to the subject or a comprehensive summary. It can, therefore, be recommended for clinical assistants and newly appointed casualtv consultants whose principal interests had lain elsewhere. The candidate for Fellowshio of a Roval College of Surgeons should find all tie information that his examiners are likely to require, although they might not agree with it all. P. S. LONDON Reconstructive Surgery and Traumatology, Volume 13. Edited by G. CHAPCHAL 7 x IO in. Pp. 209+ix, with 96 illustrations. Basle: S. Karger. f10.80. Only about one-third of this book is likely to be of any interest to the accident surgeon; the rest deals with the surgical and allied treatment of the effects of cerebral palsy, a postulated cause of scoliosis, and some metabolic aspects of that condition.