BOOK REVIEW

Abstract

M REES, L KEITH, editors. The Year in Post-Menopausal Health 2004. 299 pages. Oxford: Clinical Publishing, 2004. ISBN 1-904392-23-7, ISSN 1742-3104. Price: GBP 59.99, USD 99.95. It is impossible for the busy physician to keep up with the income of competing articles that appears on a daily basis. In The Year in Post-menopausal Health the editors Margaret Reed and Louis Keith have successfully managed to comprise some of the most important articles in this field, and this book offers a unique opportunity to get a quick survey of the latest news of women's health during the menopausal transition. The editor Margaret Reed is an acknowledged world authority on the subject of women's health. It is a fact that more than one-third of all females in the western world are aged 50 or over. This drastic change in composition of society has enormous implication for medical practitioners as well as for those individuals who allocate societal resources in terms of healthcare for the ill, and wellness programs for those who are not, as stated in the foreword by the co-editor Louis Keith. Physicians in practice need an easy source of information and instruction on this topic that not only addresses specific medical topics but the social issues surrounding the time of life embracing the menopausal and post-menopausal epochs. Successful ageing is a life-long and continuing process. In women, the major health problems of old age are cardiovascular disease, cancer, osteoporosis and dementia. The book consists of six parts, covering important topics concerning pre-menopausal risk factors, major diseases of old age, like stroke and myocardial infarction, muscular-skeletal disorder, cancer, lifestyle issues, and reproductive healthcare. Each section starts with a short introduction and ends with a conclusion. The authors present the reader with a selection of recent articles on a given topic, and a survey is given of each article to present meaningful information that can be used in clinical practice. Important clinical studies like HERS and WHI have been carefully analysed and commented on. Thus, the chapters are short, the section within each chapter pithy, and useful information in each is present in abundant proportions. Perhaps, most importantly, in areas of controversy, some authors take a stand and assist the reader in coming to a meaningful conclusion about difficult clinical issues. With the format chosen by the editor and the authors, this book is a different one from the volumes you already have in abundance on your bookshelves. It will add meaningful information and treatment options and be of value to physicians in general and gynecologists in particular. It is highly recommended.