The Ulcer Story: The Authoritative Guide to Ulcers, Dyspepsia and Heartburn
CMAJ 1997;156:1751
W. Grant Thompson. 415 pp. Illust. Plenum Press, New York. 1996. Distributed in Canada by the Canadian Medical Association, Ottawa. $40.95 ($32.95 CMA members). ISBN 0-306-45275-8
[ How to order this book ]
| Overall rating: |
Excellent |
| Strengths: |
Clearly written and up to date |
| Weaknesses: |
None |
| Audience: |
Physicians and members of the general public with an interest in peptic ulcers |
Dr. W. Grant Thompson has established himself as an authoritative writer with an unusual ability to communicate effectively and in an entertaining way to physicians and the public alike. In this book he has done it again. As professor of medicine at the University of Ottawa and chief of gastroenterology at the Ottawa Civic Hospital, Thompson is well qualified to write such a book. He has had a lifelong interest in dyspepsia, functional gastrointestinal disease and the evaluation of abdominal symptoms.
This book is a chronology of the fascinating 20th-century story of the acid-related disorders. Seldom in medical history have there been such sweeping changes in the therapeutic approach to and the pathophysiologic concepts concerning ulcers. For the reader to understand the broad dimensions of this subject, the author has structured the book in 7 parts: part 1 concerns anatomy, physiology, terminology, history and epidemiology; part 2 the causes of ulcers; part 3 dyspepsia, gastric and duodenal ulcers, and complications; part 4 heartburn and gastroesophageal reflux; part 5 functional dyspepsia, noncardiac chest pain, functional gastrointestinal disease and cancer of the upper gastrointestinal tract; and part 6 specific treatments for ulcers, esophagitis and dyspepsia. The final section provides an interesting approach to the issues involved in evaluating treatments for ulcers in clinical trials and the challenge of assessing upper gastrointestinal symptoms.
The origin of symptoms and their implications, and the relevance of psychosocial factors, are of increasing interest to patients and physicians, and they receive due attention in this book. Thompson has dealt with these subjects better than any other author.
The chapters are succinct and well laid out, with helpful subheadings and a concise summary. The text is also supported by diagrams, black-and-white photographs (mainly radiographs) and tables. The text is liberally sprinkled with appropriate historical quotations. There is a useful bibliography at the end of the book; it provides excellent guidance for further reading.
The book is remarkably up to date. It succeeds in dispelling many long-standing myths about ulcers and in leading readers lucidly through the marked changes in our understanding of the pathophysiologic aspects, investigation and management of the acid-related disorders.
This book should be read by all physicians with an interest in ulcers and esophagitis, and especially by those who treat these diseases. Others with a more general interest in medicine will also enjoy this book and find it entertaining and easy to read.
Richard H. Hunt, MB, ChB
Faculty of Medicine
McMaster University
Hamilton, Ont.
 |
Send a letter to the editor responding to this article
Envoyez une lettre à la rédaction au sujet de cet article |
Books and other media