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| BOOK REVIEW |
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| Year : 2012 | Volume
: 20
| Issue : 1 | Page : 79-80 |
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Principles and practice of burn care
N Venkateshwaran
Co- Editor, IJB, India
| Date of Web Publication | 13-May-2013 |
Correspondence Address:
N Venkateshwaran
Consultant Plastic Surgeon Jupitor Hospital, Thane. National Burn Center, Airoli, Maharashtra
India
 Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None  | Check |
How to cite this article:
Venkateshwaran N. Principles and practice of burn care. Indian J Burns 2012;20:79-80 |
Sujata Sarabahi, V. K. Tiwari, Arun Goel, L. C. Gupta
Jaypee Brothers Medical Publishers (P) Ltd
A review of the book Principles and Practice of BURN CARE by Drs Sujata Sarabahi, VK Tiwari, Arun Goel and LC Gupta can be summed up in three simple words, "a complete book". But by such a simple commentary I would be doing injustice to the journal reader who wants to buy this book after reading my review. So, let us plunge into a dissection of the book and its contents. I know this review comes really late and many of the readers may already own a copy. But for all those disposed to let sleeping dogs lie and lying books gather dust, here goes…
The book is rightly classified into a number of relevant sub-categories like General considerations, Early care, Local care, Special types, Sites, Rehab and Organization. The book has a promising start with the chapter of History, Epidemiology and Prevention, which is well-organized, well-researched and well-delivered. It could, however, have been more illustrative and is devoid of photographs. The importance of the chapters on Anatomy, Etiology and Classification cannot be overstressed and the authors have delivered the goods. Extra points for excellent clinical photos. The chapter on the Pathophysiology of shock and burn wound is written in a simple and lucid style, but has over-simplified the issue and left out important molecular level details. However, these are made up for in the chapters on Immunology. Microbiology in the burn patient is an important but often neglected chapter which has been given due importance in this book. Moving to the section of Early care, all the chapters are well-researched and written and are literally dripping with the experience of the authors. However, some light could have been thrown on salvaging a decompensated patient in terms of ionotropic support, monitoring parameters, blood products etc., for it is often only in troubled times that one flips the pages of textbooks for help! In the next section on Local care, the burn wound management and burn wound infection chapters are excellent and a must read for students and specialists alike. The chapter on excision and grafting could have been more detailed. Anesthesia and skin substitutes chapters deliver the goods. Coming to the special types section, Electrical burns has been dealt with in wonderful detail, replete with excellent photos, no doubt thanks to the capital having dangling networks of open wiring on the streets! However, more could have been said regarding the role of free flaps and the problems faced thereof. The chapters on chemical and radiation burns are superb in their detail. Kudos for addition of two aspects not given great importance usually-friction and firecracker burns. In the special sites section, facial burns is well written, however, procedures for microstomia correction which are missing would have helped the beginner. The chapter on hand burns is a collector's item, the range of photos defy words of praise. The inclusion of a chapter on burns in pregnancy is thoughtful. The Rehab section features excellent chapters giving guidelines on nutrition, physiotherapy, management of burn sequelae, legal aspects and disability calculations. The chapter on Multiple Organ Dysfunction Syndrome actually belongs in the Early care section, but better late than never as they say. Finally, in the section of Organization, the chapter on the organization of a burn unit is crisp and complete, whereas the chapter on disaster management is detailed and very comprehensive.
This review will not be complete if I don't urge the readers to go through the useful appendices. They should have come up with some better name than Appendix for this section in every book, for it is neither vestigial nor can it be sacrificed with no harm done!
Collating a book with contributions from multiple authors is a herculean task, but the result is worth all the effort. Lastly, I urge students and practitioners alike to give a serious thought about reading this book, and hope that at least some of the passion the editors and authors have for burn care rubs off on us. Happy reading!!
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