Ann Thorac Surg 2001;71:1072
© 2001 The Society of Thoracic Surgeons
Review of recent books
Mechanical circulatory support
Edited by Wayne E. Richenbacher, Georgetown, TX, Landes Bioscience, 1999, 244 pp, 62 Tables, 76 Figures, U.S. $45, ISBN: 1-57059-530-5
Joseph B. Zwischenberger, MDa
a Galveston, Texas, USA
I greatly appreciate the opportunity to review the handbook Mechanical Circulatory Support largely written and edited by Wayne E. Richenbacher. I also had this book reviewed by a perfusionist and one of our nurses to reinforce my observations. Dr Richenbacher approached the development of this handbook as "light on theory" but focused as a "hands on" or "how to" approach for care and management of patients with assisted circulation. The book is intended to serve as a practical guide for all members of the multiple disciplinary circulatory support team. The emphasis is on the team effort and the book is generously illustrated by line drawings and tables to summarize information. Overall, the single-author editorial style is outstanding as the handbook is consistent throughout, extremely clear, and avoided repetition presented in a concise, easy to read, accurate and readily comprehensible style applicable to daily practice.
The handbook is well written and directed primarily at the level of a resident in cardiothoracic surgery, critical care nurse, perfusionist or a cardiac surgeon who assists or occasionally performs circulatory support. The book is not intended as a comprehensive review and as such lacks detail for the surgeon primarily interested in circulatory support or related investigative fields such as circulatory support physiology, bioengineering, blood surface interactions, inflammatory mediators, etc. As a handbook it describes the daily organization, management, and considerations of circulatory support. The paperback format allows quick reference and easily fits into a pocket or at the bedside. The book is ideally suited for immediate reading prior to performing a procedure or troubleshooting a relevant problem. Several aspects of the book are surprisingly complete such as equipment maintenance and administrative considerations as well as a full spectrum of techniques on insertion and device removal. An excellent discussion is presented on advantages and disadvantages of the different types of circulatory assist devices available, their FDA status, as well as expense. The section on anesthesia considerations is particularly insightful and emphasizes the multiple disciplinary aspect of ventricular assist device management. The tables are well organized and educational, however none are referenced. Specific details of vad troubleshooting such as air transport and defibrillation are particularly welcomed.
The handbook format is the main shortcoming of the book as no color illustrations are used and the paper does not allow good reproductions of x-ray or echo images. Many of the tables are presented as a list without explanation for the relative merits of the points listed. The entire book is referenced sparsely and should prompt a literature review if further information is felt necessary.
Overall, this is an extremely well written, edited and illustrated handbook which benefits greatly by its single author, same editor format that allows a consistency and lack of repetition throughout the handbook which is greatly welcomed for this topic. I highly recommend the purchase of this handbook for any resident, nurse or healthcare personnel who participates in the management of circulatory support patients. Most importantly, this handbook would serve as a valuable guide to the cardiothoracic surgeon who is assisting or occasionally providing mechanical circulatory support as a secondary interest.
