One of the latest offerings from Springer Publishing, Contemporary Rhinology: Science and Practice, is a comprehensive text on the subject of rhinology. Edited by AC Swift and S Carrie from the UK and C de Souza from India, this book provides a complete appraisal of the subject of rhinology as it currently stands. In compiling the content, the editors have recruited a wealth of contributors, all of them well known in the field.
I feel that the team involved has tried to present a book that is as compact and concise as possible but also without compromise on detail. The hardbound textbook comes weighing in at 660 pages with full colour illustrations and tables across its entirety.
Following on from a forward by VJ Lund, the book is presented across seven sections that are concerned with broad topics of (1) the basic science of rhinology, (2) investigations, (3) paediatrics, (4) inflammatory disorders, (5) tumours, (6) surgery and (7) miscellaneous topics.
The section on the basic science of rhinology is very well presented, going into great detail about the topics that can be a challenge to deliver. I appreciated the clear illustrations that complement the text and give the reader a full understanding of the concepts. The content of this section alone would be of great value for the trainee who is preparing for their exit examination in terms of the detail required from the curriculum.
A later section on paediatric rhinology was of great interest. The topics covered included masses, inflammatory disease and trauma and deformity. I was glad to read about paediatric nasal trauma and its management, which is a highly contentious subject. A very balanced presentation of the evidence behind management options is given.
Subsequent sections on nasal tumours and surgery are full of very useful information referencing current guidelines and global practice. The chapter concerning open approaches to the paranasal sinuses was very well presented with useful tips on surgical decision making and very good clinical images illustrating the authors’ techniques. I was also glad to see that a chapter on transorbital endoscopic surgery was included, as this is a technique that is established and only growing within the broad field of rhinological surgery.
The section on miscellaneous rhinological disorders was one that I was very impressed with. Thought had been given to the topics that needed to be covered and what is included is robust in its breadth. I was particularly glad to read the chapter on vasculitis and cocaine, including the considerations that the authors took in surgical reconstruction and technique.
I particularly enjoyed the chapter on rhinological dilemmas and questions from clinical practice. This consisted of a number of short passages to help direct the reader on subjects that they may well still be unsure of given the current evidence, but also areas for further study.
In conclusion this book deserves a place among the useful and strong texts in rhinology. It provides enough comprehensive information for the trainees all the way to complementing the practice of tertiary university teaching hospital rhinologists. The proportion of contributors from the UK also makes it an appropriate text to refer to for both the Fellowship of the Royal College of Surgeons examination and beyond.
