Due to reduced working hours amongst junior doctors, a quick-reference, practical guide to common emergency surgical problems and trauma is needed more than ever. 'Emergencies in Clinical Surgery' aims to make the life of junior surgeons easier. It is written in an easily accessible, concise style, and is in a pocket-sized format that means that readers are able to refer to it on the ward, or on the way down to the Emergency Department. The use of icons indicating the degree of urgency for each condition helps to focus the mind of the reader and aid in the identification of true emergencies. Part 1 deals with three different approaches to the sick surgical patient, as well as communication and how to prepare the patient for emergency surgery, endoscopy, or interventional radiology. Part 2 is concerned with the assessment and management of trauma emergencies, the acute abdomen, and ward emergencies. Conditions are cross-referenced to more detailed topics in Part 3 ('Disease-based emergency surgery'). This contains a fuller description of individual diseases with comments on initial and further investigations and management. Specific early complications after surgery, endoscopy, and interventional radiology are also dealt with. Finally, Part 4 describes how to perform common procedures, along with their indications, contraindications, and post-procedure care.
