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Diagnostic Imaging: Radiology of Aids
Clinical Radiology (2003) 58: 258 doi:10.1053/crad.2003.1156, available online at www.sciencedirect.com
Book Review Diagnostic Imaging: Radiology of Aids. By J. W. A. J. Reeders, Springer, Heidelberg, 2001. Price: EUR 140.00.
The excellent text with 267 figures in 453 separate illustrations (33 in colour), 25 tables and a total of 336 pages, is an absolute necessity to all radiology departments. Despite excellent progress in the treatment of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) patients in recent years, the disease still spreads rapidly throughout the developing world where economic resources are limited and physicians working in these geographical areas are well aware of the dramatic and devastating consequences of the AIDS epidemic. Radiology has been a very important discipline in diagnosing many of the diseases associated with AIDS, and continues to be relied upon by clinical providers in order to offer best care to patients. It is important that all radiologists are up to date on the epidemiology and demographics at this time. This book provides a superb reference detailing the prevalence of AIDS worldwide and the changes in disease profile since the evolution of highly active anti-retroviral therapy (HAART). The text can be used as a reference, but is also very readable having been written by expert authors from around the world. There has been meticulous editing, which avoids repetition. However, a few chapter introductions include summaries of the various epidemiological aspects of the disease which are useful to those readers who will use the book more as a reference text than as a book to read from cover to cover. (Having said that, the style in which the book is written is eminently readable making it an enjoyable cover-to-cover read!) The contents include an introduction and an epidemiological assess-
0009-9260/03/$30.00/0
ment of AIDS with a further chapter on the pathological patterns of AIDS. The disease is then described in body systems, and there is quite extensive reference to neuro-radiological imaging in AIDS. Other aspects are well covered, however, rather disappointingly paediatric AIDS imaging is assigned only 14 pages. Some of the chapters have a relatively high ratio of text to illustrations, which may appear a little heavy on text for a radiology tome. However, this is offset by the excellent use of tables and indeed the final chapter describing the different radiological patterns in AIDS “at a glance” is extremely useful as a reference point. The authors are to be commended for this superb text, which should be provided to all radiologists who encounter human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) disease. It is a salutary lesson to learn the dismal statistics and demographics, which show that one in three cases of HIV now occur in women, with a prevalence in communities of low socio-economic status. As the AIDS epidemic continues to spread, AIDS cases are no longer confined to a few specialized hospitals and are now seen in general hospitals, there is a need for a radiology AIDS text book that is both comprehensive, practical and easy to apply to daily clinical problem solving. The book summarizes current knowledge and describes the role of radiology in the assistance of diagnosis and treatment in this complex disorder. This book is an educational must for all radiologists to use as a guide when encountering AIDS patients in daily clinical practice. C. OWENS
q 2003 The Royal College of Radiologists. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
Book Review Diagnostic Imaging: Radiology of Aids. By J. W. A. J. Reeders, Springer, Heidelberg, 2001. Price: EUR 140.00.
The excellent text with 267 figures in 453 separate illustrations (33 in colour), 25 tables and a total of 336 pages, is an absolute necessity to all radiology departments. Despite excellent progress in the treatment of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) patients in recent years, the disease still spreads rapidly throughout the developing world where economic resources are limited and physicians working in these geographical areas are well aware of the dramatic and devastating consequences of the AIDS epidemic. Radiology has been a very important discipline in diagnosing many of the diseases associated with AIDS, and continues to be relied upon by clinical providers in order to offer best care to patients. It is important that all radiologists are up to date on the epidemiology and demographics at this time. This book provides a superb reference detailing the prevalence of AIDS worldwide and the changes in disease profile since the evolution of highly active anti-retroviral therapy (HAART). The text can be used as a reference, but is also very readable having been written by expert authors from around the world. There has been meticulous editing, which avoids repetition. However, a few chapter introductions include summaries of the various epidemiological aspects of the disease which are useful to those readers who will use the book more as a reference text than as a book to read from cover to cover. (Having said that, the style in which the book is written is eminently readable making it an enjoyable cover-to-cover read!) The contents include an introduction and an epidemiological assess-
0009-9260/03/$30.00/0
ment of AIDS with a further chapter on the pathological patterns of AIDS. The disease is then described in body systems, and there is quite extensive reference to neuro-radiological imaging in AIDS. Other aspects are well covered, however, rather disappointingly paediatric AIDS imaging is assigned only 14 pages. Some of the chapters have a relatively high ratio of text to illustrations, which may appear a little heavy on text for a radiology tome. However, this is offset by the excellent use of tables and indeed the final chapter describing the different radiological patterns in AIDS “at a glance” is extremely useful as a reference point. The authors are to be commended for this superb text, which should be provided to all radiologists who encounter human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) disease. It is a salutary lesson to learn the dismal statistics and demographics, which show that one in three cases of HIV now occur in women, with a prevalence in communities of low socio-economic status. As the AIDS epidemic continues to spread, AIDS cases are no longer confined to a few specialized hospitals and are now seen in general hospitals, there is a need for a radiology AIDS text book that is both comprehensive, practical and easy to apply to daily clinical problem solving. The book summarizes current knowledge and describes the role of radiology in the assistance of diagnosis and treatment in this complex disorder. This book is an educational must for all radiologists to use as a guide when encountering AIDS patients in daily clinical practice. C. OWENS
q 2003 The Royal College of Radiologists. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.