Concise Cardiology

Abstract

PrefaceThis book aims to provide an easily read general account of clinical cardiology. It is primarily designed to meet the needs of medical students, but should be helpful to advanced students in nursing and paramedical fields, as well as providing a review text for medical interns and residents. The book may help to practice modern medicine in a humane way. This means utilizing all possibilities available, but, at the same time, recognizing their limitations. Since progress in the field of cardiology advances rapidly the physician can only keep up with it by understanding diagnostic and therapeutic measures rather than by memorizing multiple facts.The need for a book such as this one has already been proven by the wide acceptance in Europe of the first two German editions (authored by M.K.). Indeed, this success prompted the collaborative effort represented here. Along with the translation into English, the authors have tried to maintain an international perspective, in tune with the greater global awareness and cooperation of the 1990s.The book is based on knowledge gained from practical experience and also from lecturing and post-graduate training in a variety of different countries. We wish to express our sincere thanks to our families, our students, and our colleagues in the departments of cardiology of the Johann-Wolfgang-Goethe University Hospital (Frankfurt), the Mayo Clinic (Rochester, Minnesota), and the Watson Clinic (Lakeland, Florida). This work is in no small measure the result of cooperation and teamwork of many years' standing with members of departments of internal medicine, cardiovascular and thoracic surgery, anesthesiology, radiology, pathology, physiology and nuclear cardiology, and we are grateful for these team efforts. We also wish to express our deep appreciation to the publishers for their constant support and guidance. v Foreword Despite recent encouraging trends, cardiovascular disease remains the most common cause of death, disability and hospitalization, and among the most frequent forms of serious illness in the industrialized world. The teaching of contemporary cardiology is a formidable challenge given the striking advances in so many disciplines, both basic and clinical, that have transformed the field in the last two decades. To aid in the education of the specialist a number of detailed, often encyclopedic texts of high quality are now available. In addition, numerous fine monographs on special aspects of cardiology have been published, again for the cardiologist. However, given the sheer magnitude of the problem of cardiovascular disease the vast preponderance of the care of patients with cardiovascular disease is now delivered, not by cardiologists, but rather by internists and family practitioners.The detailed and the specialized monographs of cardiology are not the appropriate vehicles for the education of medical students, residents, and general physicians in this very important -and by far the largest -subspecialty of internal medicine. Even the fine textbooks of intern...