BOOK REVIEWS

The Diagnosis and Treatment of Acute Poisoning. B y J . D. P . GRAHAM. Oxfo rd U n i v e r s i t y Press . £2 5s. 0d. ne t .

Do y o u t a k e s l eep ing p i l l s ? 600 m i l l i o n doses were t a k e n in B r i t a i n las t yea r (and 3,500 t o n s o f a s p i r i n m a n u f a c t u r e d as well). Over 5,000 pe r sons d ied o f p o i s o n i n g in t h e U . K . in 1957 a n d 75% o f t h e s e were " n o n - a c c i d e n t a l " . Carbon m o n o x i d e a n d ba rb i t - u r a t e t o g e t h e r a c c o u n t for t h e b u l k o f su ic ides a t t h e r a t e o f four to one. I n t h e acc iden t a l g r o u p t h e a g e d a n d c h i l d r e n u n d e r five s e e m to be a t special r i s k - - f o r obv ious reasons .

T h e s e a re a few of t h e f a s c i n a t i n g fac t s c l ea r ly p r e s e n t e d in t h e first t h i r t y p a g e s o f t h i s v a l u a b l e h a n d b o o k . T h e r e m a i n i n g four h u n d r e d pages deal in de ta i l w i th t h e d i a g n o s i s a n d t r e a t m e n t o f t h e c o m m o n - - a n d in t r u t h m a n y r a r e - - p o i s o n s i nc lud ing d r u g s , i n d u s t r i a l c h e m i c a l s , a n d t h e m e t a l s .

T h e p r e s e n t a t i o n o f t h e m a t e r i a l is c o m p l e t e a n d concise a n d is f reely i l l u s t r a t ed b y r e p o r t s o f t h e a u t h o r ' s o w n cases.

M o d e s t l y a i m i n g to s a t i s f y t h e n e e d s o f genera l p rac t i t i one r s a n d r e s iden t med ica l s taf fs , I)r . G r a h a m h a s d o n e t h i s m o s t effect ively. H e h a s a t t h e s a m e t i m e p roduced a m o s t r eadab le a n d a u t h o r i t a t i v e book.

I)AVID MITCHELL.

Neurophysiology. B y T. C. RUCH, H. D. PATTOn, J . W. WOODBUnY, A. L. TOWE. Saundere . 70/-.

T h i s a c c o u n t o f n e u r o p h y s i o l o g y compr i se s t h e chap te r s on t he ne rvous s y s t e m o f Medical Physiology and Biophysics n o w pub l i shed as a separa te vo lume . P o r t a b i l i t y is g a i n e d a t a pr ice for n a t u r a l l y t h i s b o o k is p ropor t iona te ly dearer .

T h e a u t h o r s ' a i m is to t r e a t t h e sub jec t " a s a c o n t i n u u m s t re tch ing f rom the p h y s i c s o f t h e n e u r o n to t h e phys io log ica l i n t e rp re t a t i on o f s igns and s y m p t o m s of neuro logmal d i sease " a n d t h e y h a v e a s s i m i l a t e d t h e resu l t s of m a n y research workers in to the i r u p - t o - d a t e pages . A p a r t i c u l a r l y i n t e r e s t i n g sec t ion deals wi th E m o t i o n a n d Mot iva t ion , a s p e c t s o f p h y s i o l o g y w h i c h c a n be c o m m e n d e d for s t u d y a t t he p resen t t i m e w h e n power fu l d r u g s a re b e i n g u s e d m o r e a n d m o r e b y those knowing less a n d less of cu r r en t t heo r i e s o f t h e n e u r a l bas i s o f E m o t i o n .

J . B. LYONS.

Microbiology. Carpen te r . (N.B.) $6.75 (47s. 0d.).

A m e r i c a n t e x t b o o k s o f mic rob io logy differ so comple t e ly in out look f rom those r e c o m m e n d e d to m e d i c a l s t u d e n t s o n t h i s side o f t h e At l an t i c t h a t no va l id c o m p a r i s o n is poss ible . N e v e r t h e l e s s , one o f t e n feels t h a t i t wou ld be a d i s t inc t a d v a n t a g e i f ou r s t u d e n t s w o u l d r e a d t h r o u g h a b o o k s u c h as th i s , dea l ing as i t does wi th t he genera l pr inc ip les o f m i c r o b i o l o g y a n d pa r t i cu la r ly w i t h t h e m e t a b o l i s m of m i c r o - o r g a n i s m s - - s u b j e c t s for w h i c h t h e r e is l i t t l e t i m e in t h e med ica l cur r icu lum. Th i s pa r t i cu la r work is a n exce l l en t one , wel l w r i t t e n , well i l l u s t r a t ed a n d wel l -balanced and can be h e a r t i l y r e c o m m e n d e d to t h o s e seek ing a n i n t r o d u c t i o n to General Microbiology.

P . iNT. Meenan .

Photometric Titrations. B y J . B. HEADRIDGE. P e r g a m o n Press, 1961. 45s.

P h o t o m e t r i c t i t r a t i o n s , i.e., t i t r a t i o u s in w h i c h a photo-electr ic i n s t r u m e n t is u sed to d e t e c t a v i s u a l l y diff icul t e n d - p o i n t , were first descr ibed in 1928. The t e c h n i q u e h a s n o w b e e n app l i ed to t h e a n a l y s i s o f m a n y s u b s t a n ces and some h u n d r e d s o f pape r s o n t h e s u b j e c t p u b l i s h e d in t h e p a s t decade are reviewed in th i s m o n o g r a p h . The p rocedures descr ibed wil l be o f i n t e r e s t to research workers in var ious fields, b u t h a v e l i t t le a p p l i c a t i o n in t h e cl inical l abo ra to ry , a l t h o u g h the mlc ro -complexomet r i c pro- cedures for d e t e r m i n a t i o n o f c a l c i u m a n d m a g n e s i u m on 0.1 ml . v o l u m e s o f s e r u m m a y c o m m e n d t h e m s e l v e s , p a r t i c u l a r l y t o t h o s e concerned wi th ca r ry ing ou t ana ly t i c a l p rocedures on b lood f r o m y o u n g chi ldren .

I). HINGERTY.

Fearon's Introduction to Biochemistry (4th Ed.) . Ed . by W. J . E. JESSOP. H e i n e m a n n , L o n d o n . 30]-.

I t is s a d to record t h a t P ro fe s so r F e a r o n d ied before he had comple t ed th i s f o u r t h ed i t i on o f h i s Introduction to Biochemistry. However , Professor J e s sop h a s a b l y t a k e n on t h e diff icult t a s k o f a s s e m b l i n g t h e m a n u s c r i p t where comple ted , filling in t he m i s s i n g p a r t s a n d p r e p a r i n g t h e m a n u s c r i p t for pub l i ca t ion .

T h e p re sen t e d i t i o n o f t h i s b o o k r e t a i n s t h e genera l p l an of fo rmer edi t ions . I t h a s , however , b e e n s u b d i v i d e d in to t w o a l m o s t equa l p a r t s : t he first deals w i th t h e s t r uc tu r e o f l iv ing m a t t e r , wh i l e t h e s e c o n d is c o n c e r n e d w i t h m e t a b o l i s m and t h e w a y in w h i c h t h e special e n v i r o n m e n t n e c e s s a r y to l ife is m a i n t a i n e d .

142

BOOK REVIEWS 143

T h e m o s t in te res t ing a n d u n i q u e i n t r o d u c t o r y c h ap t e r on the biological e l e m e n t s h a s been re ta ined a n d b r o u g h t u p to da t e , a n d t h e o the r c h a p t e r s o f P a r t I have been revised.

T h e chap te r s deal ing w i t h t h e m e t a b o l i s m of c a r b o h yd ra t e , fa t a n d a m i n o acids h a v e incorpora ted ex tens ive n e w m a t e r i a l d i scovered s ince t he l a s t ed i t ion , necess i t a t ing a considerable condensa t ion , pa r t i cu la r ly no t iceab le in t h e sec t ion dea l ing wi th t h e m e t a b o l i s m of a m i n o acids wh ich m a y p re sen t s o m e diff icul ty to jun io r s tuden t s .

T h i s book. as i ts n a m e impl ies , is w r i t t e n as an i n t r o d u c t i o n to t he sub jec t a n d covers t h e m a i n aspec t s o f a n i m a l b i o c h e m i s t r y . W h i l e t h e a m o u n t o f space devo ted to prac t ica l p rocedures h a s been reduced i t is, one feels, good t h a t t h i s a spec t o f t he sub jec t ha s n o t been ent i re ly e l i m i n a t e d because it se rves as a r e m i n d e r to the reader t h a t t he science o f b iochemis t ry , as indeed all sc ience, is essen t ia l ly based on prac t ica l procedures .

T h i s is a t e x t b o o k su i t ab le for b o t h med ica l a n d science s t u d e n t s in the i r first yea r of b iochemis t ry . T h e a m o u n t o f n e w m a t e r i a l w h i ch ha s been compres sed in to t h e p resen t edi t ion, w h i c h is no larger t h a n t h e fo rmer edi t ion , is a r e m a r k a b l e feat on t he p a r t of t h e editor .

T. G. BRADY.

The Merck Mannal. P u b l i s h e r s Merck , Sharp & D o h m e , H a d d i s d o n . £3.

One c a n n o t too h i g h l y r e c o m m e n d t h e 10th E d i t i o n o f t he Merck Manua l to all p h y s i c i a n s as a h a n d b o o k a i m e d a t s u p p o r t i n g t h e bes t in med ica l educa t i on and pract ice .

More t h a n 100 o u t s t a n d i n g c l in ic ians in t h e U n i t e d S ta tes , Canada a n d ab road h a v e se rved as a u t h o r i t a t i v e sources in t h e 384 chapters . The c o n t r i b u t e d i n f o r m a t i o n is a s s e m b l e d in a conc ise , c o n v e n i e n t m a n n e r . Or ig ina l ly d a t i n g f rom 1899 t h e objec t was to p rov ide " p h y s i c i a n s w i t h well o rgan i sed u p - t o - t h e - m i n u t e fac ts a n d t h e r e b y re inforce p o s t g r a d u a t e med ica l e d u c a t i o n , faci l i ta te accura te d i agnos i s a n d e m p l o y effective t r e a t m e n t . " T h i s is a b l y done in th i s n e w edi t ion . More t h a n 20 new sub jec t s a n d m a n y or ig inal i l l u s t r a t ions t o g e t h e r w i t h a d d e d tab les keep t h i s ed i t i on in s tep wi th recen t d e v e l o p m e n t s in med ic ine . I t is d iv ided in to two pa r t s w i th a ve ry gene rous i n d e x a n d l iberal cross i n d e x i n g (Par t I e m b r a c e s 21 sec t ions in wh ich all p resc r ip t ions are g rouped in to a s ing le a rea u n d e r workab le ca tegor ies a n d a l l ied to a s y s t e m of easy to find n u m e r i c a l d e s i g n a t i o n s t o g e t h e r w i t h 9 chap te r s s u m m a r i z i n g severa l special ised f o r m s of t he rapy . P a r t I I p resen t s advice on cl inical d iagnos i s , beds ide nu r s ing , office l abo ra to ry a n d se lec ted paed ia t r i c a n d i m m u n i s a t i o n procedures . L ikewise pro-opera t ive a n d pos t -ope ra t ive rou t ines t o g e t h e r w i t h d i e t a r y d a t a a n d d i rec t ions a n d prac t ica l references easy to follow.)

Beau t i fu l l y p roduced a n d p r in t ed , t h e f r equen t c o n s u l t a t i o n o f t h i s m a n u a l will be a r eward ing a n d i n f o r m a t i v e exper ience .

A. M. E. MCCABE.

X-rays--Their Origin, Dosage & Practical Application. By W. E. SCHALL, B.Sc . , F.INST.P., HeN. M.S.R. (356 I l l u s t r a t i o n s , i nc lud ing 76 Pla tes . Pr ice 50/-.)

F ive yea r s h a v e e lapsed s ince t h e l a s t ed i t i on o f t h i s popu l a r t e x t book. T h e genera l l a y o u t r e m a i n s m u c h t h e s a m e as he re to fo re . T h e open ing c h a p t e r s

are d e v o t e d to basic. P h y s i c s ; A p p a r a t u s ; C o n s t ruc t i on a n d R a d i a t i o n Phys ics . T h e chap te r s on f i lm process ing g ive a b r ie f reference to , i nc lud ing p h o t o g r a p h s of,

t he r ecen t ly des igned A u t o m a t i c p rocess ing un i t s . F u r t h e r chap te r s descr ibe t h e use o f X - r a y s in d i agnos i s , t h e r a p y and in t he indus t r i a l

field. Reference is also m a d e to I m a g e ampl i f i ca t ion a n d t he l ink up w i th Te lev i s ion moni tors . T h e c r i t i c i sm of p r e s e n t m e t h o d s o f A n g i o c a r d i o g r a p h y (p. 255) s e e m s a l i t t le ha r sh , as few s t a t i c works are seen on p re sen t d a y f i lm change r r ad iographs .

However , t h i s is a v e r y s m a l l p o i n t in a b o o k w h i c h shou ld be t he c o m p a n i o n o f every R a d i o g r a p h e r .

D. F. CANT'vVELL.

The ~enile Brain. B y R. S. ALLISON. E d w a r d Arno ld , 50/-.

This b o o k is a review of t h e c l inical i n v e s t i g a t i o n o f o rgan ic b ra in d isease in 198 pa~imats over a per iod o f 20 years .

The author w h o is s en io r p h y s i c i a n to t h e neuro log ica l d e p a r t m e n t in t h e Roya l Victoria H o s p i t a l , Be l fa s t , h a s p laced in h i s d e b t all who h a v e to care for and e x a m i n e old p~tients w i t h cerebral lesions.

To m a n y i f n o t m o s t doc to r s " t h e seni le b r a i n " is s y n o n y m o u s w i th " cerebral ar~riosclerosis " , b u t t h e a u t h o r s h o w s h o w m e t i c u l o u s l y careful cl inical e x a m i n a t i o n s u p p l e m e n t e d b y radiologieal a n d pa tho log ica l i n ves t i ga t i on enables a m u c h m o r e accurate diagnosis to be m a d e a l t h o u g h he a d m i t s t h a t even w i th t he bes t m e t h o d s available o n l y 6 6 ~ o f firm d i a g n o s e s were m a d e a n t e m o r t e m .

T h e chap te r s on neuro logica l e x a m i n a t i o n a n d a cu t e d i s t u rbances o f consc iousness

144 IRISH JOURNAL OF MEDICAL SCIENCE

are first class while t ha t on t r e a t m e n t should give food for t hough t to those therapeut ic nihil is ts to w h o m a senile cerebral lesion is a hopeless condit ion. I n th i s connect ion par t icular s tress is laid on the impor t ance of ex t ra cerebral causes in d is turbances of consciousness and of organic b ra in lesions as a cause of psychological changes.

There is a useful b ib l iog raphy and the p roduc t ion is of a h igh s tandard . Only one tr ivial misp r in t (condit ions, p. 261) was noted.

This book can be t ho rough ly r ecommended to any doctor whose practice includes the care of the aged.

J . FLEETWOOD.