Patients
with vascular diseases who need to consult a specialist come face
to face with a reality: the scarcity of angiologists in most regions
of Brazil. Except for Rio de Janeiro, where there is an active angiological
community, those who treat vascular patients and have to deal with
diseases pertaining to other specialties are almost always vascular
surgeons. Given this reality, the book, Interfaces da Angiologia
e Cirurgia Vascular (Angiology and Vascular Surgery Interfaces)
appears to be a "life saver" for Brazilian vascular surgeons.
The book, edited by professors Pedro Puech-Leão and Paulo
Kauffman, 1 and published by Editora
Roca in 2002, has gathered into a single volume a variety of information
that until now was only available in reference books from dozens
of different specialties. The objective of the editors is clearly
expressed in the title: discuss the "interfaces" of angiologists/vascular
surgeons with the different specialties that are either directly
or indirectly related to vascular diseases.
The book is presented in a large format (28 x 22 cm), is hardbound,
as a reference book should be, and is printed in high quality glazed
paper. The illustrations, with a few exceptions, are also of a good
quality. In summary, the book's graphic presentation is impeccable.
(A note: those who follow the publication of medical books in Brazil
are surprised with the drastic improvement in the editorial quality
during the last decade. Currently, the quality and care taken in
the publication of medical books in Brazil is comparable to the
quality of books published abroad - and this book is an excellent
example of it).
The book is organized into sections, each one covering an "interface"
between angiology/vascular surgery and the respective specialty.
There are 34 chapters that cover everything from anesthesia for
vascular operations to vascular accesses for hemodialysis and chemotherapy.
Almost all the authors are from Universidade de São Paulo.
The exceptions are precisely angiologists from Rio de Janeiro who
contribute with excellent chapters about difficult themes: vasculitis
and Raynaud's phenomenon.
Like any book with multiple authors, the quality varies from one
chapter to another. Some of the best chapters, in terms of the multidisciplinary
viewpoint of the book, are written by authors who do not belong
to the vascular community. The chapters about thrombophilias, vasculopathies
and AIDS and limb pain are particularly full of useful information
for vascular disease specialists who frequently need to interact
with doctors from other specialties in handling patients with these
problems.
There are but few criticisms that can be made of the book. The first
concerns a theme that has little to do with the vascular area but
that is a part of the day-to-day of the angiologist/vascular surgeon:
the group of compression syndromes of the scapular girdle, known
as thoracic outlet syndromes. In the book, the theme is succinctly
discussed in the chapter on upper limb pain. A specific, more detailed
chapter would be extremely helpful for those who deal with these
patients on a daily basis. The other criticism concerns another
theme that could have been discussed more fully in a specific chapter
(preferably with various illustrations) is the dermatopathies that
are mistaken for vascular lesions. However, these are small criticisms
that certainly do not diminish the value of this book, which is
unique in its category.
"Interfaces da Angiologia e Cirurgia Vascular"
is the most original book arising from Brazilian vascular literature
in recent years and it should be part of the library of any professional
who deals with vascular diseases. The book is particularly useful
for vascular surgeons (incidentally, almost all vascular surgeons
in Brazil) who serve, in their daily practices, as doubles for clinical
angiologists.
1.
Puech-Leão P, Kauffman P. Interfaces da Angiologia e Cirurgia
Vascular. São Paulo: Roca; 2002 (480 pages).
