Autoimmune Diseases: Acute and Complex Situations

Autoimmune diseases are a heterogeneous group of disorders in which several organs can be affected; therefore, multidisciplinary approaches are needed to avoid further complications and improve prognosis. In this regard, several up-to-date books have recently been published.

Autoimmune Diseases: Acute and Complex Situations discusses several conditions associated with autoimmune diseases. The book provides an overview of certain autoimmune diseases, including systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis, Sjögren syndrome, Behçet syndrome, systemic sclerosis, Still disease, polyarteritis nodosa, antiphospholipid syndrome, cryoglobulinemia, sarcoidosis, myositis, and vasculitis. Chapters also discuss topics such as autoimmune hematologic disorders; autoimmune ear, nose, and throat emergencies; ophthalmologic emergencies; complicated pregnancies in autoimmune diseases; and vascular surgical emergencies. Moreover, the book provides updates on assessment and care of patients with autoimmune diseases while also presenting the efficacy and safety of some biological therapies.

Fifty-seven authors from 9 countries prepared the 23 chapters, which cover the major topics in autoimmune diseases. These chapters are intended to help physicians as well as medical students learn and understand the presentations and complications of conditions associated with autoimmune diseases and to provide a practical approach to diagnosis and management in clinical practice. However, the chapters are not uniform, and ultimately they seem less like book chapters than review articles for a special issue of a journal. The selection of topics for each chapter and the order of chapter titles are not well thought out, making it difficult for readers to follow. Coverage of scientific and technical issues varies significantly by chapter.

Although some inconsistency in format throughout a multiauthored text might be inevitable, readers can expect editors to prepare a uniform outline and make a final edit before publication to avoid technical discrepancies. In this case, some chapters are exceptionally well written and include well-structured diagrams, figures, and tables, whereas some other chapters include no tables or figures and cite only few references. A major drawback is that several chapters do not follow a uniform structural outline; eg, although almost all chapters begin with an abstract and a concise introduction, only some conclude with a brief conclusion(s) section.

The chapters reflect plentiful practical experiences in each area and discuss common problems related to autoimmune diseases. An outstanding effort was made to explain clinical manifestations, diagnosis, and management of diseases, accomplished in some chapters through use of attractive photographs and illustrations. A list of appropriate references is provided at the end of each section; not surprisingly, however, the numbers of references vary from chapter to chapter. Similarly, the information learned from each section varies, because the authors added their personal reflections for those sections.

The well-written book effectively accomplishes its stated goals and covers a wide variety of topics related to autoimmune diseases. Although this book is unlikely to be used alone as a textbook on autoimmune diseases, it offers a number of teaching possibilities and could be quite useful when combined with current textbooks. Each chapter includes multiple style changes and grammatical errors, but these could be easily corrected in a subsequent edition. The editors also might consider adding an “Introduction” chapter at the beginning to outline what will be explained in other chapters; such an introduction would make the book more interesting.

Overall, Autoimmune Diseases: Acute and Complex Situations is a useful contribution to the literature of autoimmune diseases. The book will be of interest not only to rheumatologists and immunologists but also to internists and specialists involved in the multidisciplinary care of patients with autoimmune diseases. This book provides clinicians with a firm foundation for approaching these diseases.