Important Advances in Oncology 1987

use of lasers in otolaryngology, pulmonary medicine, gastroenterology, gynecology, urology, cardiovascular medicine, and orthopedic surgery. The volume opens with a 130-page chapter on basic laser physics and the interaction of laser light with soft tissues. Although this chapter is quite technical, it begins with an introduction to the use of lasers, particularly the argon, carbon dioxide, and neodymium: yttrium-aluminum-garnet lasers. Numerous graphs, charts, and mathematical formulas are included. This chapter is useful as a reference; however, as an introduction to the clinical applications which follow, it is too detailed. The majority of the book discusses the practical applications of endoscopic laser surgery in each of the specialties mentioned above. Thus, otolaryngology is divided into three chapters: the oral cavity and oropharynx, the nasal cavity and nasopharynx, and the larynx. Pulmonary medicine is also covered in three chapters, but the division is based on the type of laser used; each of the three major lasers is considered in a separate chapter. Gastroenterological laser surgery is discussed in terms of the upper GI tract, the lower GI tract, and hepatobiliary and pancreatic surgery. Gynecology is covered in two chapters, and the three remaining specialties are each considered in its own single chapter. The final four chapters deal with photodynamic therapy, laser surgery in pediatric airways, complications, and the establishment of a laser center. Ophthalmology is not considered in this text. The clinical chapters are clearly organized and well illustrated with photographs of laser equipment and endoscopic procedures. As expected in a compilation of chapters from 24 contributors, however, writing styles and quality vary. The chapter on laser surgery in the larynx resembles an autobiographical account of the author's achievements in the field; others are more traditionally scientific. The number of references in each chapter ranges from 5 to 81. On the whole, the information is interesting and well presented, but it is not entirely clear to whom that information is addressed. It is certainly not adequate for a surgeon performing laser endoscopy, nor is it brief enough to be a simple or general overview of the field. Perhaps it is of most value as an introduction to all aspects of endoscopic laser surgery for those who are entirely new to the field and prepared to progress to reading at greater depth in a specific subspecialty.