Gut: first published as 10.1136/gut.30.12.1802 on 1 December 1989. Downloaded from

1802 Books general the text is clear and the quality of the research unit. This is a welcome approach in an area translation is good. As a minor aside, the book has where multidisciplinary involvement is essential and been translated into American English and in some yet where, perhaps more than other areas in gastro- chapters retains Latin anatomical terms which may enterology, polarisation particularly between medical not be immediately familiar. The quality of the and surgical disciplines exists. illustrations is good. Line drawings have been used The authors have succeeded in bringing together throughout with careful use of shading and the a varied panel of contributors including gastroenter- employment of one illustrator has led to pleasing ologists, surgeons, paediatricians, pathologists, consistency and clarity of production. In general, the endoscopists and research workers in the field. The work is authoritative although as might be expected, 26 chapters are authoritatively written and well any surgeon reading it would disagree with some of illustrated, particularly the endoscopic section, the statements. For example, I am sure that many although these illustrations are grouped together surgeons do not drain all types of anastomosis after along with some coloured operative illustrations, at gastric and duodenal surgery and those that do may the front of the book rather than adjacent to the not use the Penrose drains advocated in this book. chapter. Many might disagree with the statement that surgery The chapters on investigation and management of in morbid obesity is indicated if 'excess weight has oesophageal disease are preceded by a fascinating been present for at least five years and there is failure review of the history of oesophageal surgery and to lose weight under medical treatment.' In the comprehensive sections on anatomy and physiology. section on antireflux surgery mention is made of the The coverage of the investigation and management obsolete Burge test and few surgeons would now use of the various disease processes is comprehensive an Angelchick prosthesis. As in a number of other although the sequence is sometimes confusing. For chapters, the trainee might be a little confused by the instance, consideration of gastrooesophageal reflux chapter on antireflux surgery in that the operations begins with a chapter on its complications, the are described without any significant attempt to pathophysiology of reflux being dealt with in discuss their relative worth. In some areas the book the subsequent chapter on medical treatment. gets too involved in technical minutiae and the reader In the section on surgical management of gastro- may become a little irritated by the abbreviations oesophageal reflux, consideration of the Angelchik used. I was not familiar with the abbreviation a-SPV prosthesis is reserved for the section on 'Failed

(adequate denervation selective proximal vagotomy) antireflux procedures' which some may consider http://gut.bmj.com/ or ff-py (form and function saving pylorolasty) appropriate! It is pleasing to see so many excellent let alone the abbreviations sm ff-py or o-ff-py chapters written by eminent authorities who have (submucosal or open form and function saving made major contributions in their field, particularly pyloroplasty). Castell's chapter on physiology, Pope's on complica- All in all the impression of this book is favourabls. tions of gastrooesophageal reflux and Barrett's It is a well illustrated work written by surgeons of oesophagus and its relationship to adenocarcinoma experience and standing in the field and consultant by Reid, Haggitt, and Reuben. Hill has also contri- surgeons will browse through it with some interest. I buted extensively from his vast surgical experience, on September 29, 2021 by guest. Protected copyright. would not recommend it unreservedly for the surgical but could perhaps be criticised for undue emphasis on trainee as he may emerge with a surfeit of information the use of intraoperative manometry, which has not and a somewhat confused perspective. gained widespread acceptance, and for not delegating D C CARTER the section on the Nissen fundoplication in view of his known lack of enthusiasm for that procedure. The esophagus - medical and surgical management. The coverage of the major areas of oesophageal Edited by L D Hill, R Kozarek, R McCallum, and disease is complemented by useful sections on C Dale Mercer. (Pp. 327; illustrated; £56.95.) paediatric and paediatric surgical aspect of oesopha- Philadelphia: Saunders, 1988. geal disease and on laser therapy, sclerotherapy and The increasing interest in and knowledge of endoscopic intubation, the latter frequently receiving oesophageal pathophysiology and disease has led to a scant coverage in American volumes on account of plethora of tomes on the oesophagus in recent more limited experience in the USA. Adverse criti- years. Most of these have been written or edited by cisms are few, and relate to the limited coverage of surgeons. This volume attempts a more balanced pH monitoring, largely because of references later approach by having, in addition to an impressive than 1983 being excluded. There are some areas of multi-disciplinary list of contributors, a balanced repetition, to a certain extent inevitable in a multi- editorial team comprising a surgeon, gastroenterolo- author volume of this size, although the repetition of gist, endoscopist and director of an oesophageal the components of the antireflux barrier and the Gut: first published as 10.1136/gut.30.12.1802 on 1 December 1989. Downloaded from

Books 1803 pathophysiology of reflux in the medical and surgical necessary in 1989 to devote 19 pages to the physical chapters might have been avoided by the incorpora- aspects of conventional x-ray imaging, including a tion of a single chapter on this topic preceding full page photograph of an x-ray tube. The clinical complications and management. The surgical aspects section fares somewhat better and there are good of gastro-oesophageal reflux are perhaps a little contributions on angiography, computed tomography unbalanced for the reasons stated. and ultrasonography by Crummy, Starck, Freeny, In general, however, the editors successfully Zwiebel and others. It seems wasteful to fill entire achieve their aim of integrating authoritative multi- pages with full size computed tomography and ultra- disciplinary contributions to produce a well balanced sound images some of which are clearly from older and eminently readable text. The book is liberally generation scanners and have lost definition in the indexed and illustrated, and is well produced. It will magnification process. The MR section is useful and certainly form a useful work of reference, to which the text throughout is clear, sensible, and non- those who become involved in oesophageal work controversial, though certainly not 'spumante'. should have access in their libraries, and at its Sadly the final section on relative efficacy of the relatively modest price, many of those working various imaging modalities is disappointing. I had regularly in the field would probably prefer to have hoped for a hard hitting, terse style leading to the best their own copy. buy, but found the first few pages of each section to A WATSON be a discussion on epidemiology, pathogenesis, and clinical presentation of conditions. For example, in The gastroenterology assistant: a laboratory manual. the section on acute cholecystitis, no optimal tech- Edited by Melvin Schapiro and Joel Kuntsby. nique is summarised and there are many ultrasound (Pp. 205; illustrated; $40.00.) Encino, California: images showing gall bladders containing calculi (yet Zephyr Medical, 1989. more of these are elsewhere in the book, do editors This is the third edition of a book which has always not edit?). This chapter concludes with four pages of received wide acclaim in the USA. There, it is references, and I cannot believe imaging in acute regarded as the yardstick of protocols for gastro- cholecystitis is so very controversial. Readers intestinal procedures. As such, it is to be found in would be surprised at the conclusion on the chronic most endoscopy departments or gastrointestinal cholecystitis chapter to find that one-third of the text laboratories, both as a bench book or reference is devoted to extolling the virtues of the plain film to

manual. determine if calcified gall stones are present, the http://gut.bmj.com/ The third edition has been extensively revised and remaining two-thirds is devoted to the diagnosis of enlarged to incorporate details of the most up-to-date chronic acalculous cholecystitis. therapeutic procedures in endoscopy. Here, endo- This is not a work I would recommend to hepato- scopy assistant, medical student, resident and biliary colleagues either to take on holiday or to read even consultant will find practical guidance of an upon their return. immensely valuable nature. Although the manual R DICK has multiple authorship, the style is generally uniform. The layout is clear and the detail compre- Biliary lithotripsy. J T Ferrucci, M Delius, and H J on September 29, 2021 by guest. Protected copyright. hensive. Here one can find all manner of practical Burhenne. (Pp. 309; illustrated; £61.) Chicago: Year help for the efficient undertaking of procedures. Book Medical Published Inc, 1989. Whilst some of the 'tests' described are rather dated, This publication is adapted from the proceedings of the book is crammed with detail about the up-to- the first international symposium on biliary lithotripsy date investigations which comprise everyday work in held in Boston, Massachusetts in July 1988, and is an a busy department. excellent review of the many non-surgical techniques Despite the fact that the book is in the American now being used for the treatment of gall stone idiom, no self-respecting gastrointestinal unit should disease. For those not directly involved in extra- be without it. corporal shock wave lithotripsy, the first five sections C H J SWAN representing one third of the book provides an extremely useful technical and clinical background to Modern imaging of the liver. By M A Wilson and F F the subject and although the results are inevitably Ruzicka. (Pp. 695; illustrated; $180.00.) New York: somewhat out of date the variety of contributions Marcel Dekker, 1989. from many centres around the world provide initial Like Gaul, this book is divided into three parts. Each results with comments on difficulties and successes. section has major limitations which might seriously For those centres considering the purchase of a deter a would be buyer. lithotripsy machine, this work will be invaluable. Part I deals with basic principles. I question if it is Suitable consideration and discussion is given to