Gastroenterology and Nutrition: Neonatology Questions and Controversies, 3rd Edition

By, Josef Neu, MD; Brenda Poindexter, MD, MS; Richard A. Polin, MD

ISBN: 9780323545020

Pub Date: 28 August 2018

Reviewed by: Jay P. Goldsmith, MD (Tulane University School of Medicine)

Description

Part of a series entitled Neonatology Questions and Controversies, this book reviews current selected issues in neonatal gastroenterology  and nutrition. Its 12 standalone reviews/chapters cover such topics as controversies in the use of donor milk, necrotizing enterocolitis, and short bowel syndrome. In this rapidly changing field, the updated information in this edition is a welcome supplement to the second edition published in 2012. This edition also includes access to an ebook version.

Purpose

The purpose is to address “clinically relevant questions and controversies” in the field of gastroenterology and nutrition. This is a worthy objective in this rapidly changing field where questions of the microbiome pervade almost every decision made in the NICU.

Audience

The intended audience is neonatal bedside caretakers, since most of the chapters have clinical relevance. Many of the questions and controversies are common topics on rounds, and this book will be a valuable resource to inform those discussions. The authors and most of the contributors are internationally known authorities in the field, although some of the authors are very junior and some are not identified other than by name.

Features

The chapters cover relatively broad topics in the field of gastroenterology and nutrition. After the first two chapters on maturation of the gut and motility reflexes, the remaining 10 cover everyday problems encountered in a busy NICU. This edition updates all of the subjects covered in the second edition and adds new information on gastroesophageal reflux and gut motility, administration of lipids to prematures, and the efficacy of donor milk. The last brief chapter (two pages) is an informed look into the future by two very knowledgeable researchers. There are minimal illustrations, but they are clear and easy to understand.

Assessment

This book follows the concept of highlighting controversies and future directions more than most of the others in this series. All of the chapters are relatively succinct and easy to read, and concentrate on the bedside issues clinicians face on a daily basis. This is not meant to replace a standard textbook on neonatology or the standard GI books such as Neonatal Nutrition and Metabolism, 2nd edition, Thureen and Hay (Cambridge University Press, 2006). However, compared to standard books, this is an excellent and more in-depth resource for common clinical issues and should be an asset for bedside providers.

Doody’s Review Service Weighted Numerical Score: 94 – 4 Stars!