Kendig's Disorders of the Respiratory Tract in Children
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《新英格兰医药杂志》
Kendig's Disorders of the Respiratory Tract in Children was originally published nearly 40 years ago and is now in its seventh edition. In their preface, the editors refer to it as "the bible" of pediatric pulmonology. Although improving on the "bible" may seem sacrilegious, I believe the editors have done just that.
The book has been changed in many ways. Pediatric pulmonology is a small — some might even say intimate — subspecialty that has benefited from having an international constituency. The book reflects this international flavor in its contributors, with more than a quarter of them coming from outside the United States and Canada — four times the number appearing in the prior edition.
The organizational plan of the book is logical and comprehensive, covering the entire field, including normal development, diagnostic assessment, and the spectrum of infectious and noninfectious disorders of the lungs and chest wall. The plan reflects the changing nature of the field; as knowledge of the molecular basis and the evidence base for the principles of treating asthma and cystic fibrosis has expanded, so has their coverage in the text. Both these subjects were given one chapter each in the previous edition; this edition covers them in five chapters each. Nevertheless, the total number of chapters in the book is the same as in the previous edition.
Appropriate consolidation of chapters devoted to rare disorders allows detailed discussion of common disorders. Alveolar proteinosis, alveolar microlithiasis, and alpha1-antitrypsin deficiency are now discussed in a single chapter, which retains its detail. An excellent chapter on the atypical pneumonias combines six formerly individual chapters on legionnaires' disease, chlamydia and mycoplasma pneumonias, Q fever, tularemia, and psittacosis (the chapter also manages to discuss hantavirus and inhalational anthrax). Because of these revisions, the book now more accurately reflects the relative distribution of time most pediatric pulmonologists devote to various disorders.
Among several excellent new chapters are authoritative discussions of airway inflammation, surfactant metabolism and deficiencies, chronic respiratory failure, pediatric lung transplantation, drug administration by aerosols, pulmonary arterial hypertension, and pediatric severe acute respiratory syndrome. Other chapters have been revised to the point of being new, such as those on pulmonary-function testing in infants and preschool children and on diagnostic imaging. There is also a superb overview of congenital lung diseases.
Every reader will have some personal quarrel with a well-worn reference book such as this one. I would like to have seen more detailed discussion of certain disorders, such as pectus excavatum and pulmonary lymphangiectasia, and of important therapeutic techniques, such as oxygen administration and chest physical therapy. However, I find there is more to like than to quarrel with: little gems such as the figure illustrating the wave speed theory of flow limitation in the chapter on lung-function testing, the discussion of the relationship between nasal and lower respiratory tract disease, and the discussion of the molecular basis of alpha1-antitrypsin deficiency, complete with useful illustrations of the mechanism of action. And I particularly like the color plates at the beginning of the book, which include images of bronchoscopic and bronchoalveolar lavage findings, as well as a veritable atlas of congenital lung disorders.
There are other recent excellent textbooks for the pediatric pulmonologist. Perhaps if Kendig's Disorders of the Respiratory Tract in Children is not the Bible, it is at the very least the Old Testament, and like the Old Testament, it is as relevant now as when it was first written — and just as venerable.
Julian L. Allen, M.D.
University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine
Philadelphia, PA 19104
allenj@email.chop.edu(Seventh edition. Edited b)
The book has been changed in many ways. Pediatric pulmonology is a small — some might even say intimate — subspecialty that has benefited from having an international constituency. The book reflects this international flavor in its contributors, with more than a quarter of them coming from outside the United States and Canada — four times the number appearing in the prior edition.
The organizational plan of the book is logical and comprehensive, covering the entire field, including normal development, diagnostic assessment, and the spectrum of infectious and noninfectious disorders of the lungs and chest wall. The plan reflects the changing nature of the field; as knowledge of the molecular basis and the evidence base for the principles of treating asthma and cystic fibrosis has expanded, so has their coverage in the text. Both these subjects were given one chapter each in the previous edition; this edition covers them in five chapters each. Nevertheless, the total number of chapters in the book is the same as in the previous edition.
Appropriate consolidation of chapters devoted to rare disorders allows detailed discussion of common disorders. Alveolar proteinosis, alveolar microlithiasis, and alpha1-antitrypsin deficiency are now discussed in a single chapter, which retains its detail. An excellent chapter on the atypical pneumonias combines six formerly individual chapters on legionnaires' disease, chlamydia and mycoplasma pneumonias, Q fever, tularemia, and psittacosis (the chapter also manages to discuss hantavirus and inhalational anthrax). Because of these revisions, the book now more accurately reflects the relative distribution of time most pediatric pulmonologists devote to various disorders.
Among several excellent new chapters are authoritative discussions of airway inflammation, surfactant metabolism and deficiencies, chronic respiratory failure, pediatric lung transplantation, drug administration by aerosols, pulmonary arterial hypertension, and pediatric severe acute respiratory syndrome. Other chapters have been revised to the point of being new, such as those on pulmonary-function testing in infants and preschool children and on diagnostic imaging. There is also a superb overview of congenital lung diseases.
Every reader will have some personal quarrel with a well-worn reference book such as this one. I would like to have seen more detailed discussion of certain disorders, such as pectus excavatum and pulmonary lymphangiectasia, and of important therapeutic techniques, such as oxygen administration and chest physical therapy. However, I find there is more to like than to quarrel with: little gems such as the figure illustrating the wave speed theory of flow limitation in the chapter on lung-function testing, the discussion of the relationship between nasal and lower respiratory tract disease, and the discussion of the molecular basis of alpha1-antitrypsin deficiency, complete with useful illustrations of the mechanism of action. And I particularly like the color plates at the beginning of the book, which include images of bronchoscopic and bronchoalveolar lavage findings, as well as a veritable atlas of congenital lung disorders.
There are other recent excellent textbooks for the pediatric pulmonologist. Perhaps if Kendig's Disorders of the Respiratory Tract in Children is not the Bible, it is at the very least the Old Testament, and like the Old Testament, it is as relevant now as when it was first written — and just as venerable.
Julian L. Allen, M.D.
University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine
Philadelphia, PA 19104
allenj@email.chop.edu(Seventh edition. Edited b)