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Book Review
Infectious Diseases: A Clinical Approach, 2nd Edition
Allen Yung, Malcolm McDonald, Denis Spelman, Alan Street, Paul Johnson, Tania
Sorrell, and Joe McCormack, editors
IP Communications, East Hawthorn, Victoria, Australia, 2005
ISBN: 095786177X
Pages: 602; Price: Australian $130.00 (includes CD-ROM)
Suggested citation for this article
The recent award of the Nobel Prize to Barry Marshall and J. Robin Warren for
their discovery of Helicobacter pylori and its role in gastritis and
peptic ulcer disease has again put infectious diseases on to the front page
of newspapers around the world. Notably, their initial work was performed in
Perth, Australia. The clinical practice of infectious diseases, and associated
research into microorganisms, has long been established in Australia. This book
capitalizes on the expertise of infectious disease physicians and microbiologists
in Australia and surrounding regions. Infectious Diseases: A Clinical Approach
is written from an Australian perspective but has potential for a global audience.
The book’s first 2 parts deal with a general, clinical approach to the patient
with a possible infection. This section is full of clinical "pearls," particularly
relating to the patient with undifferentiated fever. Some sections, such as
"Pitfalls in the Diagnosis of Serious Bacterial Infection, Especially Meningococcemia"
or "Reasons Not To Treat Fever," are a joy to read and could be posted on the
walls of emergency departments or general medical wards in every hospital. These
sections are of relevance to internists and infectious disease fellows, but
for a seasoned infectious diseases physician, they may not offer anything new.
Experienced infectious disease physicians, however, are likely to gain new
insights into infections occurring in Asia, Australia, and the southwest Pacific
region. A patient vacationing one day in Fiji or Tahiti may be visiting the emergency
department of a hospital in North America or Europe the next day. While most
physicians might search the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website
to find what infections are endemic in the region in question, or whether outbreaks
have recently been reported there, this book provides context from authors working
in the regions they describe. The clinical evaluation of infections in returned
travelers and immigrants is also particularly well covered.
As an infectious disease physician working in the United States, I would not
purchase this book to find detailed information on specific infections or specific
antimicrobial agents. This is a book I would purchase for a first-year fellow
or a resident who has enjoyed rounding with the infectious diseases service.
The book is a gold mine of clinical advice based on obtaining a detailed history
and performing a thorough physical examination. It is full of advice on "traps
for young players" and ends with 28 golden rules of infectious disease practice.
The book is dedicated to Richard Kemp, an infectious disease physician, who
tragically died at the age of 50. Kemp was renowned as a clinician and would
have undoubtedly endorsed the practical approach to infectious disease management
advocated in this book.
David L. Paterson*
*University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
Suggested citation
for this article:
Paterson DL. Infectious diseases:
a clinical approach, 2nd edition [book review]. Emerg Infect Dis [serial on
the Internet]. 2006 Jun [date cited]. Available from http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/EID/vol12no06/06-0296.htm
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