This article is only available in the PDF format. Download the PDF to view the article, as well as its associated figures and tables.
The second edition of Ventilators and Inhalation Therapy presents the updated viewpoints of Dr. Dobkin and 20 other experts on the use of mechanical ventilators and on modalities of inhalation therapy. The book is well edited, indeed, and references are abundant and appropriate.
The book is practical and clinical in its orientation. Leading off with a chapter entitled "Anesthesia and Respiration" may give the impression of a slanting of emphasis. The aim of the book is broader than that; and prolonged mechanical ventilation gets its fair share.
The coverage of relevant topics is comprehensive, including a sketch of ventilation-perfusion problems; the differential of diagnosis of respiratory failure; the characteristics of mechanical ventilators, as well as mechanical hazards; inhalation therapy methods and equipment; and chest physical therapy. The important psychologic problems in patients receiving prolonged mechanical ventilation are dealt with very thoughtfully.
The book does not pretend to present pediatric problems