Wendy R. (WMRod) reviewed on 4/19/2008 + 171 more book reviews

I *LOVED* this book. Not only does it cover many fascinating cases in Bellview Hospital in New York, it also talks about the new science of Emergency Medicine as its own field of study. The book was originally written in 1987 when AIDS was becoming acknowledged as a world-wide epidemic, so to read about AIDS and AIDS-related diseases back then is a terrific detail on the history of the disease. For instance, did you know that AIDS was originally called GRID (Gay Related Immune Deficiency) by the Medical community, because in the infancy of the epidemic it was almost exclusively seen in gay patients? (IV drug users soon showed the disease to be much more wide-spread.) This book also goes into fascinating detail about exactly what happens to the body during certain medical emergencies: *Why* an extreme allergic reaction to peanuts, for example, will kill, or what happens during hypothermia. The 8 page glossary at the back of the book helps any layman understand the medical terms.
The new edition has a great last chapter that Dr Goldfrank wrote in 2003 to mention many of the changes in emergency medicine during those years. A fascinating, well-written book that I highly recommend to anyone who has even a passing interest in medicine and its recent history.

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