Book Reviews

The aim of this small pocket sized text is to provide an introduction to the syndrome of diabetes. The author has intended the emphasis of the book to concentrate mainly on the clinical aspects of diabetes, although concepts in aetiology and pathophysiology have been mentioned. This book is aimed primarily at medical undergraduates. It is a very concise but comprehensive overview of all the clinical aspects of diabetes. Virtually every aspect is touched upon but none dealt with in any depth. The book is certainly up to date in that it mentions troglitazone, a new drug for the treatment of diabetes associated with insulinresistance, not yet available in the UK. On the other hand, although the importance of glycaemic control is mentioned, there is nothing about the Diabetes Control and Complications Trial (DCCT), which provided a turning point in our understanding of how to manage patients with insulin-dependent diabetes. Because of its conciseness and resultant brevity the chapters on treatment are very short on detail. Although hypoglycaemia, insulin, and hypoglycaemic agents are mentioned there is no detail on how to treat hypoglycaemia, give insulin or prescribe oral agents. One is, therefore, left wondering what the reader would get out of studying the text. I believe that it should have gone into more detail, using tables, charts or flow diagrams to illustrate clinical problems and their management in more depth. Nevertheless, the good quality illustrations are of interest and provide a good overview of the many problems to be faced in a diabetic clinic. Some, however, are eclectic and I note in the dietetic section, a photograph of jaw wiring for obesity which, in practice, is rarely used and the space could have been used better for something more relevant, e.g. some explanation about the importance of alcohol, and its effects on diabetes, or more detail about lipid-lowering medication. H. J. Bodansky