Ashley (cardiovascular medicine, Stanford U.) and Niebauer (internal medicine and cardiology, U. of Leipzig) give general clinicians tools to summarize cardiac cases in the language of the specialist. They examine basic physiology and pathophysiologic mechanisms, explain when referral is appropriate, and describe what the specialist is likely to do. Their topics include advice on conducting cardiovascular examinations and reading echocardiograms. They describe such conditions as coronary artery disease, hypertension, heart failure, arrhythmia, valve disease, infective endocarditis, cardiomyopathy, aneurysm and dissection of the aorta, pericardial disease, and adult congenital heart disease. They include a large number of illustrations, including treatment algorithms, drawings, graphs, electrocardiograms, x-rays, and images. They also include tips on such conditions as diabetes and Marfan's syndrome. Annotation ©2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
