Limb Prosthetics, by A Bennet Wilson Jr. Demos Publications, 156 Fifth Avenue, Suite 1018, New York, NY 10010, 6th edn, 1989 (ISBN 0 939957 22 I). Illus. 114 pages. $18.95, plus $3 postage and packing.

This paperback is intended as an introduction to prosthetics for both students and qualified staff in the fields of occupational therapy, physiotherapy, and doctors in rehabilitation and orthopaedic surgery. The author is an associate professor in the department of orthopaedics and rehabilitation in Virginia and a well-known expert in this field.

It is a handbook covering the story of limb prosthetics, amputation levels, post- operative dressings, prostheses for upper and lower limb amputees and, briefly, prosthetic training and stump care. There are also chapters covering the specific treatment of the child amputee, elderly amputees and finally, functional and vocational capacities, sports and recreation for the amputee.

The author's aims for the book have, I feel, been achieved and the layout is well organised, it is very readable and has many clear diagramatic illustrations throughout the volume. There are some Americanisations and differences of names and practice, but these are few and should not confuse the reader.

Although there are 79 references cited, only a third of these are from the last ten years, and 15% from the last five years. This perhaps reflects the extensive knowledge of the author in this field in which he has been involved for a long period.

The prosthetic specialty is changing rapidly now, and in spite of this I feel the book will be useful to have as an introduction to the topic of physiotherapists and students as individuals or in the department.

R HAM MCSP

Communication Skills Training for Health Professionals: An instructor's handbook, by D A Dickson, 0 Hargie and N C Morrow. Routledge, Chapman and Hall, Andover, 1989 (ISBN 041 2327104). Illus. 347 pages. €16.95.

The focus of this book is to meet the immediate practical needs of people involved in the training of health professionals in the area of communication skills.

The authors are well qualified to write on this subject. David A Dickson is head of the social skills training centre and Owen Hargie is head of the department of communica- tion, both at the University of Ulster. Norman C Morrow is director of continuing pharmaceutical education for Northern Ireland, department of pharmacy, Queen's University, Belfast.

The book is divided into four major areas. The first section provides a general back- ground to the importance of communication in the health professions and deals with the notions of communication as a skills activity. It looks at contrasting approaches to training and identifies the particular training procedure featured in the book, namely communication skills training (CST), which is based upon fundamental concepts of learning theories, including modelling, practice and feedback.

The second section looks at the content of communication skills training and extends some of the notions of communication as

a skill introduced in the earlier chapters. A theoretical model of the communication process is developed, highlighting its trans- actional nature. This section also focuses on the performative dimension of communica- tion, what practitioners actually do when they communicate w i th patients or significant others, and presents a set of key basic skills of communication which should be part of the interpersonal skills repertoire of all health workers. Finally, the latter part of this section adopts a more holistic perspective on the communication process t o examine broad stategies which practitioners commonly employ in order to achieve desired outcomes.

The remaining two sections deal with the process of communication skills training and the formulating of a communication skills training programme. The authors develop an applied theoretical foundation for the com- munication skill process upon which to base training and explore the phases and processes involved in planning, implementing and evaluating a training programme.

The text is well referenced, easy to read,

and throughout the book materials, ideas and practical exercises are included which can be used in the training of all health professionals. It would prove a useful text for teachers and clinicians involved in the training of physiotherapy students or those wishing to embark on an in-service training programme.

S F JONES MCSP DipTP

Lower Your Blood Pressure in Four Easy Stages, by Dr Caroline Shreeve. Thorsons, Wellingborough, 1989 (ISBN 0 7225 1635 5). Illus. 128 pages. €3.99.

The number of cases of high blood pressure in the UK is said to have risen by 91% in the past ten years. This book for general readers suggests four ways of reducing blood pressure - by diet, exercise, relaxation and finding an appropriate therapy, bearing in mind that drugs are not always the answer.

Starting with an explanation of what blood pressure is and why high levels can be harmful, the book is easy reading and filled with indisputably good advice.

Clinical Orthopaedic Examination, by Ronald individual joints are very well organised and McRae. Churchill Livingstone, Edinburgh, explained. 1990 3rd edn (ISBN 0 443 04038 9). Illus. Before going into the examination 256 Daaes. € 1 2.95. principles, anatomical features highlighting . -

This third edition of Clinical Orthopaedic €xamination gives a comprehensive guide to any student or qualified member of the medical or paramedical professions.

The book outlines the examination procedures of each joint in the body based on a six-step regime of inspection, palpation, examination of movement, conduction of special tests, examination of radiographs, and arranging further investigations.

Unfortunately the principles of muscle testing are only briefly mentioned in the first chapter 'General principles in the examination of a patient with an orthopaedic problem' (page 5).

A limited number of muscle testing procedures are mentioned in some chapters, ie trendelenburg test or in the second chapter on 'Segmental and peripheral nerves

relations of bone, muscle, tendons, ligaments, etc, are explained, followed by the most common pathologies occurring in and around the joint concerned.

The author has made excellent use of X- rays and anatomical diagrams, at the end of each chapter, which clearly show the normal before demonstrating features of the abnormal (see illustrations below). This is an aspect which is often left out of examination procedures and textbooks.

Once again this excellent textbook has brought out in a simple but comprehensive way, the steps to carry out a full examination in excellent diagrammatic form.

This book is a must for the undergraduate or for those needing revision in orthopaedic examination as an easy to use reference L - _I DOOK. of the upper limb'.

Bearing this in mind, the chapters on FIONA COUTTS MCSP

Radiographs ( I ) : Normal antero-posterior radiograph of the elbow

(2): Normal lateral radiograph of the elbow v

IS) trochlea, (CIcapituium. (D) lateral epicondyle, (E) radial head, IF) radial tuberosity, (GI coronoid process of ulna, (HI olecranon. Note the relationship between the radial head and the capitulum in both views

physiotherapy, August 1990, vol76, no 8 493