Expert guide to asthma | |
Understanding asthma. A management companion. Ronald S Walls, Christine R Jenkins (editors). Sydney: MacLennan and Petty, 2000 (334 pp). ISBN 0 86433 142 8. |
The prevalence of asthma in Australia is amongst the highest in the world and Australians have developed considerable expertise in most disciplines relevant to this condition. The range of authors contributing to this text reflects that knowledge base. It is aimed at non-specialist health professionals with a particular interest in asthma and is a companion to material such as the Asthma management handbook.
The book is concise, practical and easy to read, and provides an excellent, authoritative overview of all aspects of asthma and its management. It covers important and often neglected issues such as adherence, alternative therapy, SCUBA diving, vocal cord dysfunction, food reactions and steroid resistance. The text generally avoids confusion between sensitisers of asthma and triggers of symptoms, often not true of other works in this area. It also places procedures such as bronchial provocation in context. Individually there are many good chapters, but some inconsistencies exist. An example of this is the comments on the role of measuring and avoiding aeroallergens and the recognition of cough-variant asthma as an entity. These different comments should be cross-referenced to provide an editorial opinion. Some recommendations, such as allergen avoidance as primary prevention, are put without an adequate evidence base. This could have been balanced with current concepts on immunological maturation and the role of infections and allergens in asthma and atopy. There are some areas that could have been covered in greater depth, such as the debate on early anti-inflammatory treatment, especially in children, and the use of procedures such as induced sputum. The first chapter was written by the late Ann Woolcock and is a fitting tribute to her major contribution to the understanding and management of asthma worldwide. There are a few minor errors and it is a pity that the Asthma Foundation of Western Australia was omitted from the list of resources. The information provided, from basic concepts to management principles, by such an extensive range of internationally recognised experts is good value at $77. Louis I Landau
|