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 This book outlines asthma as a disease and discusses its diagnosis,
management and the therapies used in its management.
The book has a good balance of practical information underpinned by the
physiology of the disease and the chemistry and pharmacology of current
and future treatments. The book is laid out so that the reader can identify
sections of interest easily and the referencing ensures that the interested
reader can obtain more information.
The author makes use of focus points
throughout, in areas such as risk factors, diagnosis, management, adverse
effects and inhalation delivery, to reinforce important messages about
asthma and its treatment and to provide a rapid review for practitioners.
Clear, concise and well presented tables reinforce and complement the
text.
The book, at nearly 300 pages long, is a comprehensive reference volume
which augments the current British Thoracic Society and Scottish Intercollegiate
Guideline Network collaborative guideline and gives the reader an excellent
source of information based on a pharmacist’s view and role when
dealing with the disease and its management. The author acknowledges
that the guideline is ever changing and directs the reader to the appropriate
website where updates are published regularly.
‘Asthma in focus’ is aimed at all practising pharmacists and will
be of use to community and hospital practitioners alike, especially those
with an interest in respiratory medicine and those engaged in the provision
of asthma clinics and supplementary or independent prescribing. The book
will also be useful to undergraduate students and preregistration graduates.
Anne C. Boyter
(senior lecturer at the Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and
Biomedical Sciences, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow) |
The
Pharmaceutical Journal