Case Studies in Infectious Disease

The authors have assembled a collection of case studies about the 40 infectious diseases that cause the most illness and death worldwide. Each chapter begins with a brief case presentation. This example is followed by a section on microbiologic aspects of the organism, including the pathophysiology of infection. The host response is then described, followed by a discussion of clinical manifestations, diagnostic methods, and treatment options, including prevention. A summary highlights salient points of each section. References, suggestions for further reading, and websites for additional information are all provided. Chapters conclude with a series of questions (answers are given at the end of the book). 
 
The book is meant for use by medical students in a microbiology course, but it can also be used by any clinician who wants a concise review of the pathogens that cause infectious diseases. The case presentations are short and not presented as conditions having an unknown cause, but they rather serve as a clinical starting point to open discussion. The microbiology sections are geared more toward the student in a microbiology course and tend to have more details than are needed by a practicing clinician. The sections on patient symptoms are generally quite good and are inclusive. The varied clinical manifestations, particularly of the tropical diseases, are presented in an easy-to-understand format. The level of detail given provides a thorough yet succinct picture of each disease. The sections on diagnosis are generally inclusive, although a few did not mention some available diagnostic options used in the United States; this may have been due to differences in the availability of some tests in the United Kingdom, where many of the authors are based. The treatment sections tend to be abbreviated and frequently do not include the length of therapy and some other details that a practicing clinician would want to know. For those needing specific therapy guidelines, another source will be necessary. 
 
The summary sections are quite good and are an excellent quick reference source if one wants just the highlights and a brief summary about the pathogen and disease. The questions at the end tend to be multiple choice with several possible correct answers for each one; they are not structured to prepare for testing purposes (such as for a board review). The websites are helpful sources for downloadable slides as well as for further information if more details are wanted. 
 
The only chapter that was confusing was that on coxsackie viruses. The authors kept referring to other enteroviruses. The chapter could benefit from either fewer references to other enteroviruses or renaming it to be a section on enteroviruses in general. 
 
Case Studies in Infectious Diseases is a valuable compilation of information on the most common diseases that cause illness and death worldwide. The presentation format with distinct sections makes it readable and well suited for either students just learning about the pathogens causing infectious disease or clinicians who need an update. The level of detail is well thought out and gives the reader a useful summary of each pathogen and disease state. The condensed presentations make it a good reference source for those with insufficient time to read through more detailed textbooks.

Case Studies in Infectious Disease reports 40 cases, each of them dedicated to 1 microorganism.Written by immunology and microbiology experts, it covers most common bacteria, viruses, protozoa, fungi, and worms.Each case illustrates the natural history of infection and opens the discussion on diagnosis and treatment.
Discussion is subdivided into the same 5 core sets of questions for each case, to encourage the student to think in a common sequence: "What is the causative agent, how does it enter the body and how does it spread a) within the body and b) from person to person" describes the natural physiopathology of infection.It starts with a precise description of the pathogen and its classification, as well as cellular and molecular description, serological variants, and metabolism.After describing the mechanism of dissemination, epidemiology is developed from a worldwide point of view, considering both rich and developing countries.
"What is the host response to the infection and what is the disease pathogenesis" reveals clearly the precise mechanism of immune response to the pathogen, including not only which immune cells are involved but also which cytokines play a central role in the pathogenesis.
"What is the typical clinical presentation and what complications can occur?""covers the clinical aspects of the infection.It is probably the least detailed part of each chapter, with concise enumeration of clinical signs and complications.
"How is the disease diagnosed and what is the differential diagnosis?"reports the way to reach diagnosis.It refers quasiexclusively to biological diagnostic procedures (bacterial, serological, or through molecular biology).There is very little consideration given to imaging procedures.
"How is the disease managed and prevented?"documents treatment and prevention.As for the clinical description of the disease, principles of treatment are briefly reported with enumeration of various available molecules but with little practical indication.
Many tables summarize important data for each microorganism.A summary highlights the main concepts of each question, and a bibliography gives very current references.The bibliography refers to textbooks as well as journal articles and Web sites.It should be noticed that, although this book was printed in 2009, some references are as recent as 2008.
A set of multiple choice questions closes each chapter.Responses are given at the end of the book, with a short comment for each answer (including both the correct and incorrect answers).
The text is generously illustrated with beautiful pictures of bacteria, as well as with color schemes.Photographs are mainly devoted to depicting laboratory results.
The interesting aspect of this book is that it will interest students in microbiology as much as it will interest clinical medical students.Moreover, this book could be as useful for a medical student learning infectious disease as for an assistant professor searching for questions to use in an examination.
Although it is very well documented and illustrated, the chapters sometimes differ in the richness of information that they contain.For example, the chapter on the genetics and microbiology of Neisseria gonorrhoeae offers a great amount of detail, whereas the chapter on Listeria monocytogenes is very short, approximately as short as the chapter on parvovirus.The chapter on Streptococcus pyogenes illus-trates this heterogeneity fairly well.Because the title of the book refers to clinical cases, one expects a detailed description of the case, whereas it is presented by means of a picture and a brief text.In contrast, it documents quite exhaustively the biochemical characteristic used to identify the bacteria and provides a table listing virulence factors, and the text on the immune response describes how the pathogen inactivates complement.Furthermore, there are 2 full pages listing the possible differential diagnosis of all of the different infections due to S. pyogenes, including pharyngitis as well as necrotizing fasciitis.Unfortunately, there is not a word on the strategy of treatment based on rapid antigen detection tests.
In conclusion, Case Studies in Infectious Disease is a handsome, excellent book on most common pathogens, with a clear orientation to immunology, physiopathology, and microbiology, but the readers should already have a knowledge of the clinical and therapeutic aspects of infection.It reads well and is an excellent textbook for medical students and a good source of illustrations, tables, and question ideas for teachers.