Contemporary medical practice necessitates a broad knowledge of drug treatments, which are constantly being updated and modified.
This book is small but packed with essential and easily accessible information. Of all the subjects that are in the medical curriculum, pharmacology can sometimes seem especially abstract and theoretical. A quick flick through the pages of this book that are relevant to one’s own speciality is an immediate reminder of the importance of understanding the ways in which the drugs that we routinely prescribe are handled. The clear identification of hazardous side-effects and potential interactions is especially welcome. Finally, the section providing current information and management guidelines for commonly encountered medical emergencies is both clear and comprehensive.
Safe use of the modern therapeutic armamentarium is a daunting task for junior doctors and medical students. Although there has been a large growth in electronic resources and some excellent online textbooks have been produced, there remains a critical need for small reference texts that can be carried at all times and used to check drug doses or potential interactions at the point of prescription. The simple precaution of checking facts in any unfamiliar prescribing situation is likely to prevent mistakes, and exemplifies current emphasis on safe-practice and clinical risk management.
Even the most senior specialist could learn something from this book’s pages and that a comprehensive up-to-date volume such as this is an essential part of any junior doctor’s tool kit, and will prove useful far beyond its target audience.
Contents
- How to use this book
- List of abbreviations
- How to prescribe safely
- Common/useful drugs
Part 1 Drug selection
- Antibiotics
- Hypertension management
- Asthma
- Analgesia
- Palliative care and subcutaneous pumps
- Antiemetics
- Alcohol withdrawal
- Antidepresssants
Part 2 How to prescribe
- Insulin
- Anticoagulants
- Thrombolysis
- Controlled drugs
Part 3 Miscellaneous
- Intravenous fluids
- Steroids
- Sedation/sleeping tablets
- Benzodiazepines
- Side effect profiles
- Cytochrome P450
Part 4 Medical emergencies
- Acute coronary syndromes (ACS)
- Acute LVF
- Accelerated hypertension
- Atrial fibrillation
- Acute asthma
- COPD exacerbation
- Pulmonary embolism
- Acute upper GI haemorrhage
- Sepsis (severe or septic shock)
- Epilepsy
- DKA
- HONK
- Glucose decrease
- Thyrotoxic crisis
- Myxoedema coma
- Addisonian crisis
- Electrolyte disturbances
- Overdoses
Part 5 Reference information
- Coma: GCS
- Cognitive impairment
- Useful formulae
- Common laboratory reference values
Index
About the Authors
- Timothy R.J. Nicholson, MBBS, BSc, MSc, MRCP, MRCPsych, Honorary Specialist Registrar at the South London and Maudsley NHS Trust and Research Fellow, Department of Cognitive Neuropsychiatry, Institute of Psychiatry, London, UK.
- Ashan Gunarathne, MBBS, MRCP, Specialist Registrar in Cardiovascular Clinical Pharmacology and Medicine, University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire and Birmingham NHS Trusts and Honorary Lecturer in Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Birmingham and Warwick, UK.
- Donald R.J. Singer, BMedBiol, MD, FRCP, Professor of Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics, Clinical Sciences Research Institute, Warwick Medical School, University of Warwick and University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire, Coventry, UK.
Product Details
- Paperback: 264 pages
- Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA; 3rd edition (January 25, 2010)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0340985224
- ISBN-13: 978-0340985229
- Product Dimensions: 5.6 x 4.1 x 0.6 inches
List Price: $24.95