Hemodynamics and Cardiology: Neonatology Questions and Controversies, 3rd Edition

By Istvan Seri, MD, PhD, HonD; Martin Kluckow, MBBS, FRACP, PhD, CCPU (Neonatal); Richard A. Polin, MD

ISBN: 9780323533669

Pub Date: 29 Aug 2018

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

Description

Part of the Neonatology Questions and Controversies series, this book is an up-to-date review of neonatal hemodynamic and cardiology issues. Rather than follow the format of many of the other titles in this series (i.e. answering questions and addressing controversies), this is a fairly comprehensive review of the physiology and pathophysiology of cardiac and hemodynamic issues in the newborn. It addresses most of the essential issues in cardiovascular compromise including blood flow, organ oxygenation and perfusion and clinical consequences of abnormalities in these areas. 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 authors intend this as an update to the previous edition for practicing neonatologists rather than cardiologists. Most of the book is oriented toward the recognition of cardiac compromise in noncongenital heart disease in order to avoid the long-term morbidities of inadequate organ perfusion. This is a worthy objective and one that has not been covered extensively in the standard neonatal literature. The website helps meet the objectives with excellent illustrations and hyperlinks to PubMed for references.

Audience

The intended audience is practicing neonatologists and/or trainees. Certain clinical sections may be of value to other caretakers (i.e. residents, neonatal nurse practitioners, and RNs), but readers will need to have good fundamental knowledge to gain value from the research-oriented chapters. The authors and most of the contributors are highly respected authorities in this field.

Features

The focus of this book has been redirected to practicing neonatologists and newborns with cardiovascular compromise as opposed to babies with congenital heart disease (although the final two chapters deal with management of CHD in the delivery room and catheter-based therapy). The book begins with reviews of cardiovascular physiology and principles of transition. The next section reviews measurement of organ blood flow, assessment, and treatment. Final sections deal with particular pathologies, such as patent ductus arteriosus, shock, and pulmonary hypertension. There are also interesting discussions of the hemodynamic effects of hypothermia and adrenal insufficiency. Each chapter is a standalone review of the topic with excellent illustrations, charts, and tables. Because this book does not follow the question and controversy format of others in this series, such controversies as the appropriate treatment of blood pressure issues in the very low birth weight infant are discussed in several chapters, but not dealt with as a separate and important topic.

Assessment

This book is fairly unique in that it does not, for the most part, deal with congenital heart disease, but with the hemodynamic aspects of neonates with normally structured hearts who suffer cardiovascular compromise. It is written at a high level, but this updated edition is certainly an important addition to the literature in this field.

Doody’s Review Service Weighted Numerical Score: 98 – 5 Stars!