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Oxford Handbook of Anaesthesia

Article in BJA British Journal of Anaesthesia · March 2012

DOI: 10.1093/bja/aes076

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 British Journal of Anaesthesia 108 (4): 707–8 (2012)
BOOK REVIEWS
Oxford Handbook of Anaesthesia, 3rd Edn. K. Allman and
I. Wilson (editors). Published by Oxford University Press,
Oxford, UK. Pp. 1344; indexed; illustrated. Price £34.99.
ISBN 978-0-19-958404-8.
The primary objective of the third edition of this popular
pocketbook, as stated in the authors’ preface, remains that
it is a practical guide to the practice of anaesthesia for
those who have mastered the basic principles. The chapters
are written predominantly by UK clinician anaesthetists who
are experts in their field, and the target readership is clinician
anaesthetists facing practical clinical problems.
The book is structured around subsections starting with
preoperative assessment, followed by anaesthetic considera-
tions in the various surgical specialities, including detailed
chapters on obstetric and paediatric anaesthesia. It con-
cludes with sections on anaesthetic emergencies, ‘practical
anaesthesia’, and regional anaesthesia.
The presentation is generally ‘easy on the eye’ with almost
all text delivered in a bullet-point format, with liberal use of
gentle, lilac-shaded tables. This is shown to advantage, for
example, in the tabular presentation of the NICE guidelines
on preoperative anaesthetic testing and the comprehensive
listing of anaesthetic risk. An unusual feature of the chapter
structure is that different subsections of single chapters are
sometimes written by different authors, whose names are
highlighted in the chapter summary pages to a greater
extent than the title of the information being imparted,
which I found somewhat disconcerting. Nonetheless, the
editors have competently welded potentially contrasting
styles of individual writers within these single chapters, to
give a seamless, consistent readability throughout.
The book has interesting, quirky headings of information
on challenging practice, which I found particularly useful.
Examples include Paul Myles’ single-page list of evidence-
based medicine interventions in anaesthesia which ought
to be deployed more widely or abandoned altogether, and
the comprehensive summaries of anaesthetic considerations
in ‘Uncommon Conditions’, including exotic diseases such as
nesidioblastosis, cherubism, and Smith –Lemli –Optiz syn-
drome! These rarities, should one have the misfortune to
come across them at short notice, are summarized in a
single sentence with the main anaesthetic hazards outlined.
Anaesthesia for particular surgical specialities follows in
the same lucid style, preceded at the top of each page by
useful tables, indicating likely duration, postoperative pain
levels, and possible anaesthetic technique options for specif-
ic operations. The chapter on ‘The sick laparotomy’ is particu-
larly meritorious, with useful links to chapters on sepsis
syndrome and intensive care management.
The obstetric anaesthesia section includes useful pages
summarizing the poorly functioning epidural and
& The Author [2012]. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the British Journal of Anaesthesia. All rights reserved.
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remifentanil in labour analgesia and, especially, breast
feeding and drug transfer, and provide clinical advice for
situations about which information can be difficult to
access from other sources. Similarly, the section on paediat-
ric and neonatal anaesthesia adds general points of import-
ance, followed by a comprehensive list of management
guidelines for specific paediatric surgeries.
The chapter on critical care incorporates much on trauma
resuscitation also, applying the primary survey to critical care
in an interesting and logical way. Intensivists may be disap-
pointed at the somewhat more limited range and depth of
subject coverage here, but this textbook would hardly be
designed to prioritize this complex subspeciality, which
could be the focus of an entirely distinct manual in a
similar format.
The chapter on Emergencies is excellent with key relevant
points of diagnosis and management presented together in
a page or two. The Practical Anaesthesia section incorporates
a number of topical issues around point-of-care monitoring
such as oesophageal Doppler, depth of anaesthesia monitor-
ing, cardiopulmonary exercise testing, and the recently re-
emerging thromboelastography.
I was apprehensive that a detailed section of regional an-
aesthesia with its emphasis on ultrasound-guided techni-
ques would not work in the context of this textbook. On
the contrary, the result is a concise summary of relevant clin-
ical knowledge on the conduct of regional techniques, com-
plete with excellent schematic anatomical diagrams, and
even the ultrasound images are generally unambiguous
and worthy of inclusion.
In summary, therefore, this pocket-portable textbook for
practising clinicians is surprisingly comprehensive, has dis-
tilled much relevant detail and prioritized essential points,
into its compact size. Overall, it provides an excellent compil-
ation of relevant, readable, and insightful information and
advice, for both the trainee and experienced consultant.
D. J. Buggy
Dublin, Ireland
E-mail: donal.buggy@cancerscreening.ie
doi:10.1093/bja/aes076
Thoracic Anaesthesia. J. WilkinsonS. H. Pennefather and
R. A. McCahon (editors). Published by Oxford University
Press, Oxford, UK. Pp. 786; indexed: illustrated. Price £44.99.
ISBN 978-0-19-956309-8.
Thoracic Anaesthesia is the first edition from the series,
Oxford Specialist Handbooks. It is written by 38 authors and
complied by three editors. The book begins with the basic
sciences, covering physiology, anatomy, and pharmacology.