Synopsis
Provides anaesthetists, intensivists, and emergency physicians with key skills to manage airways in various patient groups and clinical settings.
Doody Review Services
Reviewer:David J. Dries, MD(University of Minnesota Medical School)
Description:This overview of airway management is part of the Core Topics series produced by Cambridge University Press.
Purpose:A well-illustrated, easy to read, introduction to a key aspect of critical care is provided.
Audience:Trainees, senior anesthesiologists, surgeons and other disciplines with an interest in critical care are a worthy audience for this book. Specialty nurses may also benefit. Editors and authors are from leading medical centers in the United Kingdom.
Features:A spectrum of airway considerations is reviewed beginning with fundamental anatomy and physiology followed by physics and management of common problems including the failed airway and airway management in the setting of maxillofacial surgery, trauma, pediatrics, and exogenous obesity. The 26 chapters are concise and clearly written with excellent employment of tables, line drawings, black-and-white and colored illustrations. Many of the color illustrations reproduce with superb quality. Chapters include a brief reference list of primary sources dating to within one year of publication. A brief table of contents lists chapters and authorship while a subject index of 10 pages provides adequate access to text content. Separate citation is made to help identify tables and other displayed information.
Assessment:This is an excellent overview of a central concern for anesthesiologists, surgeons, and internists with an interest in critical care. A highlight is photographs of airway pathology with high quality. Reference lists, though brief, contain recent work from important sources. Editors and authors achieve an excellent overview.