Borelli: De Motu Animalium. A first treatise on biomechanics

De Motu Animalium seemingly constitutes the very first treatise on biomechanics. The author, Giovanni Alfonso Borelli (1608-1679), was professor of mathematics in Pisa, where he worked with Malighi who was professor of theoretical medicine and focused Borelli's interest on the movements of living creatures. The work consists of two parts. In the first part Borelli analyses the action of the muscles, the movements of the limbs, and the activities of man and animals, including skating, running, jumping, swimming and flying. The second part deals with what is now called physiology, considered from the point of view of a mechanist: heart, blood circulation, breathing, separation of urine from blood in the kidneys, liver function, reproduction, fatigue, thirst, hunger, fever, and so on. The book shows Borelli to be a genial precursor. He expresses his opinion as a mathematician on problems which afterwards further stimulated the curiosity and endeavors of many generations of researchers.     

Optimal Treatment Strategies in End-Stage Renal Failure. Claude Jacobs (editor), Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK, 2002

This book by Claude Jacobs and other well known clinical nephrologistsfrom Europe and the US is a valuable contribution to availablemodalities and optimal strategies for the treatment of end-stagerenal disease (ESRD). The first part of the book includes generalchapters on extra-corporeal renal replacement therapy (RRT),peritoneal dialysis, renal transplantation and multi-organ transplantation.The second part     

Core Topics in Operating Department Practice: Anaesthesia and Critical Care.

This new book forms part of a series exploring aspects of corepractice in perioperative care. The book is intended to focuson developments in anaesthetic practice. It is aimed squarelyat the UK market of operating department practitioners and anaestheticnurses needing to     

Respiratory Critical Care

Whatever branch of critical care you work in, support for thefailing respiratory system is a vital part of your activity.We know, and we are told more than once in this book, that intensivecare started with the support of a single organ failure, thelung. The book is a thorough review of the subject written byan international cast of authors. It starts with anatomy andphysiology and develops the theme through physiotherapy, monitoring,pathophysiology, and modes of     

Technique of safe laser surgery

This article deals with the different methods used for safe laser resection. The first decision confronting the endoscopist is whether to use the flexible fibrescope under local anaesthesia or the rigid open tube under general anaesthesia. In the first section of this article we will discuss these two techniques. The second section deals with the resection technique and describes the main principles of laser resection, which are for the most part the same for both the rigid and flexible systems, but, as we explain in the second part of this section, we feel in terms of efficiency, safety and patient comfort the rigid system is by far the most appropriate instrument for laser surgery.     

Richard Morton (1637-98) and his Phthisiologia.

Richard Morton was one of the outstanding physicians of the seventeenth century. After graduating BA at Oxford he elected to enter the Church, becoming ultimately Vicar of Kinver in Staffordshire. On the Restoration he found himself unable to comply with the requirements of the Act of Uniformity and was ousted from his Staffordshire living. He disappeared for eight years but reappeared in 1670 when, on the sponsorship of the Prince of Orange, the degree of MD was conferred on him by the University of Oxford. He set up in practice in London and was elected a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians in 1678. He has left a lasting memorial in the form of his book Phthisiologia which deals with all aspects of phthisis, the word being interpreted in its widest sense to denote any disease associated with wasting. It is not known where Morton obtained his medical education nor is there anything in his writings to indicate where he spent the eight years between 1662 and 1670. It is suggested that he may have been in Holland for part of those years attending the University of Leyden and making the acquaintance of the Prince of Orange whose patronage was to prove so useful at Oxford in 1670.     

Antidotes

Please could you review this small book, a little light readingfor you—came the request from the editor? OK, I said.The book arrived and while not a huge tome, over 300 pages onantidotes is not a light read either. Let me say at the beginningthough that I am glad I did read it, as it was a fascinatinginsight into an area I knew a little about. Perhaps part     

Clinical Pain Management: Cancer Pain.

Cancer pain is one in a series of four books entitled ClinicalPain Management. Other books in the series are Acute Pain, ChronicPain, and Practical Applications and Procedures. The book isdivided into three sections: Basic Considerations in CancerPain Management; Clinical Management—Therapies; and ClinicalManagement—Special Situations. The first section is thebest part of the book. It consists of nine chapters     

Opioid Research: Methods and Protocols

As an experimentalist with major interests in the pharmacologyof opioids, I was delighted to receive this book to review.It is part of the Methods in Molecular Medicine series (SeriesEditor: John M. Walker),     

Uroonkologische Forschung aus Labor und Klinik

This report presents current work and results of projects in the uro-oncological field from the Cantonal Hospital of St. Gallen. The first part deals with dendritic cell-based immunotherapy of hormone refractory prostate cancer. In the second part, some recent results of clinical and laboratory work for non-muscle invasive bladder cancer are highlighted.     

Intraosseous carcinoma of the jaws: A clinicopathologic review. Part III: Primary intraosseous squamous cell carcinoma

This is the third part of a review of the clinicopathologic features of intraosseous carcinoma of the jaws (IOCJ). In parts 1 and 2, we discussed metastatic and salivary‐type and odontogenic carcinomas, respectively. This part deals with primary intraosseous squamous cell carcinoma. Again, based on a critical approach, we emphasize histopathologic features, diagnostic difficulties, discuss histogenesis, and highlight areas of uncertainty. The 3‐part review also offers speculations on how future studies may refine our understanding of the unusual and interesting IOCJ. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Head Neck, 2012     

Zur ISHLT-Leitlinie: Immunsuppression nach Herztransplantation‬‬‬‬‬

The first successful heart transplantation was performed in December 1967 by Christiaan Barnard at Groote Schuur Hospital in Cape Town, South Africa. Since then the procedure has been established in specialized centers as the gold standard in the treatment of patients with terminal heart failure. Heart transplantation can be performed safely and provides excellent acute survival rates and due to modern immunosuppressive strategies good long-term results. Regular monitoring of heart transplant recipients is necessary, particularly with regard to asymptomatic rejection episodes. Therefore, different substances inhibiting specific pathways of the immune response are available with different side effect profiles. This article summarizes the evidence and recommendations of the guidelines of the International Society of Heart and Lung Transplantation (ISHLT; Costanzo et al., J Heart Lung Transplant 2010;29:914–956) on the diagnosis and treatment of heart transplantation patients. The presented first part of this article deals with diagnostics and available immunosuppressive drugs, the second part deals with different immunosuppressive regimes.     

Zur ISHLT-Leitlinie: Immunsuppression nach Herztransplantation

The first successful heart transplantation was performed in December 1967 by Christiaan Barnard at Groote Schuur Hospital in Cape Town, South Africa. Since then the procedure has been established in specialized centers as the gold standard in the treatment of patients with terminal heart failure. Heart transplantation can be performed safely and provides excellent acute survival rates and due to modern immunosuppressive strategies good long-term results. Regular monitoring of heart transplant recipients is necessary, particularly with regard to asymptomatic rejection episodes. Therefore, different substances inhibiting specific pathways of the immune response are available with different side effect profiles. This article summarizes the evidence and recommendations of the guidelines of the International Society of Heart and Lung Transplantation (ISHLT; Costanzo et al., J Heart Lung Transplant 2010;29:914–956) on the diagnosis and treatment of heart transplantation patients. The first part of this article deals with diagnostics and available immunosuppressive drugs, the presented second part deals with different immunosuppressive regimens.     

Various general methodological principles of surgery of the spine

The article deals with the methodical principles thought by the authors to contribute to further progress in the surgery of the vertebral column. They are: the anterior access, resection of the vertebrum bodies, osteo-plastic reconstruction of the destroyed part of the vertebral column.     

Seminar review: A review of the basis of surgical treatment of diabetic foot infections

Infection is an extremely challenging complication of foot ulcers in patients with diabetes. Surgery as part of a multidisciplinary approach is key in the management of many types of diabetic foot infections (DFIs). Unfortunately, the surgical treatment of DFIs is based more on clinical judgment and less on structured evidence, which leaves unresolved doubts. The clinical presentation of DFIs is varied. This review examines the basis of nonvascular surgical treatment of DFIs, emphasizing the importance of the anatomic concepts of the foot, the variety of its clinical presentations, and the concepts of timing surgery. Recent evidence and case reports based on the author's experience are presented in 2 parts. The first part examines clinical presentation of infections, whereas the second part deals with imaging, foot anatomy, and some case reports.     

Prevention of post-traumatic stress disorders

This article deals with issues which are helpful in designing preventive outreach programs for victims of traumatic stress. The first part outlines a theoretical approach to the process of coping with serious life events. The second part analyzes the various aspect of mental assistance after such events. Aims of psychological intervention and different components of intervention programs are discussed. Finally the authors describe a specific program of psychological assistance that has been developed for employees of organizations (especially banking corporations), who have become victim of violence, such as in bank robberies and hijackings. The article is partly based on the practice of preventive counselling programs which are being developed in The Netherlands.     

A review of post-traumatic stress disorder. Part I: Historical development and classification

This paper describes the history of the development of understanding of psychological responses to traumatic life-events and their treatment. One major response, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), is a recognized condition which has appeared relatively recently in diagnostic manuals. PTSD is a condition of major significance, not only to mental health professionals, but also to trauma surgeons and allied professionals. This paper focuses on the current definition of PTSD in the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10, 1992, World Health Organization) and the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of the American Psychiatric Association (DSM-IV, 1994). PTSD first appeared as an operational diagnosis in DSM-III (1980) and was revised in DSM-III-R (1987) and DSM-IV (1994). It made its first appearance in the ICD system later, in 1992. This paper seeks to increase awareness of PTSD across the broad spectrum of trauma management professionals, to emphasize the practical value of identifying the disorder and to encourage optimism for its treatment. This paper is in two parts. The first part deals with historical development and classification. The second part (to appear in the next issue of Injury) deals with treatment.     

Functional anatomy of the spine by Avicenna in his eleventh century treatise Al-Qanun fi al-Tibb (The Canons of Medicine)

The history of spinal surgery is an important part of the spine-related sciences. The development of treatment strategies for spine-related disorders is acquired from the Western literature. In this article, an Eastern physician, Ibn Sina, who is known as Avicenna in the West, and his treatise, Al-Qanun fi al-Tibb (the Canons of Medicine), are presented. Eight chapters of this book regarding the functional neuroanatomy of the spine were reviewed and are presented to give insight into the development of the understanding of spinal anatomy and biomechanics.     

Intraosseous carcinoma of the jaws: A clinicopathologic review. part II: Odontogenic carcinomas

This is the second of a 3‐part review of the clinicopathologic features of intraosseous carcinoma of the jaws (IOCJ). This part deals with odontogenic carcinomas, rare entities that are difficult to evaluate because of changes in classification/nomenclature, lack of standardized diagnostic criteria, and variable consistency of the existing literature. Endorsing a critical approach, problems are addressed and areas of uncertainty are highlighted. As in part I, we emphasize histopathologic features from a diagnostic point of view and also question the existence of some “distinct” entities. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Head Neck, 2012     

Seizures in Critical Care: a Guide to Diagnosis and Therapeutics. P. N. Varelas (editor). Published by Humana Press, New Jersey. Pp. 380; indexed; illustrated. Price US$125.00. ISBN 1-58829-342-4

This book is a comprehensive review of seizures that may presentto critical units and is part of an American series—‘CurrentClinical Neurology’. Presentation and pathophysiologyof critical care seizures is covered in the first chapter, followedby 12 chapters covering all the main causes of seizures seenin critical care, including iatrogenic and illicit drug-inducedseizures. The final chapter covers the management of statusepilepticus and seizures.