Autonomic Failure: A Textbook of Clinical Disorders of the Autonomic Nervous System, 3d ed. - book reviews

Age and Ageing,  May, 1993  by Jolyon Meara

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Edited by Sir Roger Bannister and Christopher J. Mathias Oxford: Oxford University Press. Third edition 1992. 953PP. Price 95.00[pounds].

It is ten years since the publication of the first edition of this major standard textbook on autonomic dysfunction and this latest edition contains many new chapters to keep pace with advances. As one would expect from the editorial team and the list of contributors the text is scholarly, clearly and concisely written and well referenced. The book is remarkably easy to read despite the complexity of the subject matter, the text being excellently illustrated by diagrams and tables. The book maintains a uniformly high standard of authorship and is well cross-referenced.

The contributions divide into three appropriate parts, the first lucidly dealing with the basic anatomy and function of the autonomic nervous system, the second with the ever expanding range of autonomic function tests and the third with clinical disorders. The latter section covers the primary autonomic failure syndromes, the peripheral autonomic neuropathies and a diverse collection of disorders outlining the role of the autonomic system in pain, cardiovascular disease, spinal cord lesions, and vasovagal episodes. There is an excellent chapter devoted to ageing and autonomic function which could have been expanded to discuss more fully malignant vasovagal episodes in the elderly and the role of routine tilt-table testing in the investigation of |funny turns'.

This is an important textbook for anyone who regularly encounters the many conditions in which autonomic dysfunction can occur, and this will include many geriatricians and therapists, although its price may sadly restrict its readership.

COPYRIGHT 1993 Oxford University Press
COPYRIGHT 2004 Gale Group