This beautiful little book is produced by IAPO (Inter-American Association of Pediatric Otorhinolaryngology) and comes at a time when there is growing recognition of the role of nasal and sinus pathology in airway disease.
Both adult and paediatic conditions are covered, with an emphasis on the management of children – of particular importance to the generalist rather than the specialist rhinologist. I loved the opening chapters on the history of rhinology, going back to the ancient Egyptians and superbly illustrated, including photographs of a sandstone relief depicting surgical instruments from pre-Christian times. There is indeed, ‘nothing new under the sun’!
Nasal surgery has been transformed in the professional lifetime of many of us, and this transformation is well covered here. The chapters are short, clear, brimming with wisdom and beautifully written. I especially liked the algorithms for their clarity and simplicity – rare qualities in many modern textbooks.
Although produced and edited by senior figures in IAPO, the list of authors is truly international and the emphasis is on up-to-the minute advice and internationally agreed management guidelines. The authors quite rightly stress the concept of the ‘unified airway’. The role of the nasal epithelium in respiratory health and disease is very much to the fore in modern thinking in rhinology as the subspecialty has ‘come of age’ as a scientific discipline.
I can heartily commend this book to all but it will be especially useful to anyone who looks after children in a general ORL setting.
