Editors: Manuel Bernal-Sprekelsen, MD; Ricardo L. Carrau, MD; Stefan Dazert, MD; John L. Dornhoffer, MD; Giorgio Perretti, MD; Marc A. Tewfik, MDCM; and Peter-John Wormald, MD
Publisher: Thieme – 334 pages, with 360+ illustrations, including intraoperative images
Book Review by: Nano Khilnani
Most complications in head and neck surgery are preventable, but it is extremely difficult to create a perfect record, remarks Dr. Eugene N. Myers in Foreword I of this book. He has had around 40 years of experience in this particular type of surgery, and has trained about 150 residents, plus countless fellows. He taught them how to prevent complications in head and neck surgery, which he asserts is better than having to treat them later.
For a period of time Dr. Meyers had primary responsibility for post-operative care. During this time he had the opportunity to study in depth, the causes of, and circumstances surrounding many complications. He became “quite analytical about these problems” and “found the experience to be a provocative and educational process,” he writes. He discovered that many of the errors were not only attributable to techniques used in the operating room, but were due to multi-factorial causes.
In addition to providing preventive and post-occurrence solutions to complications in surgery of the ear, nose, throat and other parts of head and neck, this book – according to Dr. Wolfgang Steiner and Dr. David Howard who wrote its Foreword II – is a practical reference source for the busy surgeon.
Having had many years of experience in head and neck surgery, they assert that it has comprehensive content, including providing numerous techniques in performing regular and routine operations in the middle and inner ear and paranasal sinuses, endoscopic skull base surgery, airway management, laryngectomy, salivary gland and thyroid surgery, and much more.
Sixty-three specialists in otology, laryngology, and rhinology (as distinct specialties), otolaryngology and otorhinolaryngology (as combined specialties), as well as endoscopic sinus and skull base surgery, general surgery, neurology, neurosurgery, neurotology, oral and maxillofacial surgery, and other specializations, contributed by authoring its 30 chapters.
They are from 12 countries – Australia, Brazil, Canada, Germany, Ireland, Italy, New Zealand, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The chapters are too numerous to list here, but to give you a broad overview of the contents of this book, we name below the titles of the Sections in which they are contained:
- Section I – Otology and Lateral Skull Base
- Section II – Rhinology and Anterior Skull Base
- Section III – Complications of Head and Neck Surgery
- Surgery of the Oral Cavity and Oropharynx
- Surgery of the Larynx, Trachea, Hypopharynx, and Esophagus
- Surgery of the Major Salivary Glands
- Surgery of the Thyroid and Parathyroid Glands
- Surgery of the Neck
- Reconstructive Surgery
Among its important features are:
- Comprehensive guide to risks and complications in head and neck surgery
- Written by leading authorities in this surgical specialty
- Easily accessible information including definitions for each complication and its sequelae, the incidence of occurrence, the point during surgery at which is most likely to happen, tips on avoiding it, and techniques for managing it.
- Includes current scientific evidence-based information throughout
- Endoscopic images, illustrations, and intraoperative photographs – numbering more than 360 – that help you visualize surgical problems and solutions for each case, including revision surgery
This book is not only important and valuable. It is essential because it is unique, in that its focus is on complications in head and neck surgery, particularly on how to prevent them, and if they occur, how to treat them effectively. It is a must-have in the library of any physician dealing with diseases and disorders of the ear, nose and throat, and any head and neck surgeon.
Editors:
Manuel Bernal-Sprekelsen, MD, PhD is Professor at Hospital Clinic in the Department of Otorhinolaryngology at the University of Barcelona in Barcelona, Spain.
Ricardo L. Carrau, MD, FACS is Professor in the Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center in Columbus, Ohio.
Stefan Dazert, MD is Professor and Chair of the Department of Otorhinolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery at Ruhr University Bochum in Bochum, Germany.
John L. Dornhoffer, MD, FACS is Professor and Sam McGill Chair in Otology Research at University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences in Little Rock, Arkansas.
Giorgio Perretti, MD is Professor in the Department of Otorhinolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery at University of Brescia in Brescia, Italy.
Marc A. Tewfik, MDCM, MSc, FRCSC is Assistant Professor in the Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery at Royal Victoria Hospital in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Peter-John Wormald, MD is Professor in the Department of Otorhinolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Woodville South, in South Australia, Australia.
