Catherine Liu, Academic General Practice Registrar, Department of General Practice, Westmead Hospital, The University of Sydney
This book provides recommendations for assessment and management of common clinical problems as well as expert advice on 'evidence-poor' areas. A notable difference from the previous Cardiovascular edition is the inclusion of an opening chapter explaining how the guidelines were produced, including the role of the expert group and the process of formulating and revising the recommendations. This explanation is important for the reader's understanding of the basis of the guidelines and represents a useful addition to the text.
Other differences between the revised version and its predecessor are the absence of the cardiovascular drug interactions chapter and the management of cerebral arterial disease (it still discusses peripheral arterial disease), and the logical transfer of the section on treatment of endocarditis to Therapeutic Guidelines: Antibiotics. This edition also has a focus on cardiovascular disease risk reduction as well as including the updated indications for statin therapy that are consistent with current Pharmaceutical Benefits Schedule guidelines.
The layout of this edition is familiar and navigable. However, overall I have found using the electronic form of Therapeutic Guidelines (eTG) easier to use in general practice as the search function is very user-friendly and information from the entire series can be accessed without needing to refer to individual books.
