Platelets - Hardcover

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0124939511 ISBN 13: 9780124939516

Publisher: Academic Press, 2002

Synopsis

2002 Best New Book in Medical Science - Professional/Scholarly Publishing Division of the Association of American Publishers

Platelets is a comprehensive new textbook of 61 chapters and 1,100 pages (approx.) written by over 100 world leaders in the field. Platelets is a single definitive source of state-of-the-art knowledge about platelets. There has been no textbook that specifically and fully covers the entire field of platelet biology and clinical medicine. Platelets now fills this need. Platelets encompasses: platelet biology; platelet function testing; the role of platelets in disease; inherited and acquired disorders of platelet number and function; pharmacology of antiplatelet agents; pharmacology of agents to increase platelet numbers and/or function; platelet transfusion medicine; and gene therapy. The intended audience for Platelets includes hematologists, cardiologists, stroke physicians, blood bankers, pathologists, and researchers in thrombosis and hemostasis - as well as students and fellows in these fields.

* A single comprehensive source of state-of-the-art knowledge about platelets
* Over 100 contributing authors from 13 countries
* The authors of each chapter are world leaders in their fields
* The definitive resource with 61 chapters, 1,100 pages (approx.), 12,000 references (approx.), 70 full color figures, 140 black and white figures, and 95 tables

About this title

About the Author

Dr. Alan D. Michelson is Director of the Center for Platelet Function Studies, Professor of Pediatrics, Medicine and Pathology, and Vice Chair for Academic Affairs in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Massachusetts Medical School in Worcester, Massachusetts, U.S.A. He received his medical degree from the University of Adelaide, Australia in 1973. Dr. Michelson continued his medical training on a Fulbright Scholarship at Harvard Medical School, Brigham and Women's Hospital, and Children's Hospital, all in Boston, Massachusetts. He has published over 300 original research articles, original research abstracts, and invited reviews. He has been the principal investigator on over 70 grants. Dr. Michelson has been an invited speaker at over 100 major medical conferences worldwide. He is Chairman of the Platelet Physiology Scientific Subcommittee of the Scientific and Standardization Committee (SSC), International Society on Thrombosis and Haemostasis (ISTH). Dr. Michelson has been an invited participant at 13 international consensus conferences and workshops, including the Antithrombotic and Thrombolytic Therapy: ACCP Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guidelines (1995 - present). Dr. Michelson is the inventor of 2 U.S. patents.

From the Back Cover

With an internationally renowned list of contributing authors, Platelets is a comprehensive and definitive source of state-of-the-art knowledge about platelets. Platelets covers the entire field of platelet biology, pathophysiology, and clinical medicine. The intended audience for Platelets includes hematologists, cardiologists, stroke physicians, blood bankers, pathologists, and researchers in thrombosis and hemostasis - as well as students and fellows in these fields.

Key Features
* Foreword by Barry S. Coller, M.D.
* Contributions from over 100 world leaders in their fields
* Single-source reference for state-of-the-art knowledge about platelets
* Covers the entire field: platelet biology, platelet function testing, the role of platelets in disease, inherited and acquired disorders of platelet number and function, pharmacology of antiplatelet agents, pharmacology of agents to increase platelet numbers and/or function, platelet transfusion medicine, and gene therapy
* The definitive resource with 61 chapters, over 1,000 pages, 12,000 references, 70 full color figures, 140 black and white figures, and 95 tables

Reviews

The simultaneous publication of two large, multiauthored books devoted to blood platelets is a landmark in hematology. In 1970, when I completed my training, I changed my research focus from red cells (the interest of my mentors) to platelets. Very little was known about platelets at that time; it was an open field for a beginning investigator. What a difference three decades have made. These two books represent the progressive narrowing of focus that is essential to the description of expanding knowledge. When I was beginning my career, books in this subspecialty were simply titled Hematology; later, books on hemostasis and thrombosis appeared; now, with these books, the focus has narrowed further, to platelets. The beauty of these two books is not just their focus but also their elegant presentation and breadth of topics. The books have similar content and a nearly parallel design. Both begin with enjoyable and instructive historical perspectives that present accounts of the evolution of our knowledge about platelets written by authors whose productive careers have spanned this evolution: Barry Coller in the Michelson book; Fraser Mustard, Raelene Kinlough-Rathbone, and Marian Packham in the book edited by Gresele et al. The latter book also concludes with an additional historical perspective by Gustav Born. Both books contain chapters on the structure and function of platelets; techniques of laboratory evaluation; descriptions of platelet disorders, including the role of platelets in systemic diseases; and therapeutic approaches such as platelet transfusion and platelet-directed antithrombotic therapy. Both books clearly achieve their goal of comprehensive coverage of platelet biology and pathology. The editors have assembled the best authors, and the authors have all provided thorough reviews with comprehensive, current citations. As would be expected in such a focused field, some authors have contributed to both books. For example, Michelson and his four coauthors contributed the chapter on the use of flow-cytometric analysis to both books. Both books are wonderfully illustrated with interpretive diagrams and charts. The Michelson book is more polished, with many color plates throughout; the illustrations in the Gresele book are less elegant, and the color plates are grouped into a single section. The Gresele book has a greater number of detailed chapters on platelet physiology; the Michelson book has greater breadth of coverage of platelet disorders. However, the books are more similar than they are different. The key question for this review is "Why read or, perhaps, even purchase either book?" The pace of the development of new knowledge in platelet biology makes some sections obsolete even before publication. New knowledge regarding platelets is continuously being presented and being given increasing space in relevant journals. The electronic media have made this increased information much more accessible than was previously the case. So I approached this review with caution. I wondered whether all large, comprehensive books like these are becoming obsolete. I wondered how books like these could be recommended for anyone. But after reading (parts of) them, I am impressed by their value. It is their breadth that is so impressive. Here are some examples. Jack Levin's chapter in the Michelson book on the evolution of platelets, including the evolution of hemostasis and blood coagulation, is a capstone to his career-long interest in this area. Nowhere but in a book like this one could Levin present, in such a lovely, illustrated fashion, the story of platelets from horseshoe-crab amebocytes through wallabies, manatees, and armadillos. This may not be part of the "core curriculum" for physicians or scientists, but it is enriching and stimulating. (Besides, we all know that the core of an apple is discarded after we have enjoyed the rest, and this chapter is indeed enjoyable.) Another example is the story of platelets in neurologic and psychiatric disorders, which is covered in both books. This also is not standard material; it seems far from hemostasis. In the chapters that recount this story, platelet abnormalities and potential roles for platelets in the mechanisms of diverse mood disorders are reviewed. A chapter on Alzheimer's disease in the Michelson book reviews current data on platelets as the major source of plasma amyloid precursor protein. The authors speculate that studies of platelets may help in the development of therapeutic strategies for Alzheimer's disease and may be important in monitoring patients' responses to treatment. Yet another example of the unexpected breadth of these books is provided by the chapters in the Gresele book on the role of platelets in such diverse situations as embryo development and inflammatory bowel disease. I have had a career-long interest in platelets, yet I found these topics entirely novel and, because of their novelty, I found them enriching. While writing this review, I became convinced that large books like these still have great value. That value may not lie so much in the specific topic for which the reader opens the book, although such topics are covered in excellent detail. I believe a greater value lies in the discovery and the fascination of the "noncore" topics. This added value is essential for scientists who devote their careers to basic or clinical research on platelets. The variety of related topics will provide new ideas, new insights, and new perspectives. This is the key to success in research -- the "Aha!" moment arising from an unexpected source. For clinicians, these books have limited value. Disorders in the number and function of platelets are comprehensively covered, but other current books, journal reviews, and electronic sources are more valuable and practical in terms of the diagnosis and management of disease. The strength of the clinical sections, as of the other sections, is their value for the investigator. The detailed summaries of genetic defects in platelets, for example, are a useful resource. Similarly, the chapters on antithrombotic therapy may have interest for clinicians, but the focus is on molecular mechanisms. For the scientist-reader, these books are landmarks, like marker pins in a survey of biology and disease seen from the perspective of the study of the platelet. They can be useful, comprehensive references, but their greater value lies in the new insights and ideas they inspire. James N. George, M.D.
Copyright © 2003 Massachusetts Medical Society. All rights reserved. The New England Journal of Medicine is a registered trademark of the MMS.

Edition details

• Publisher: Academic Press
• Publication date: 2002
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0124939511
• ISBN 13: 9780124939516
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 704
• Editor: Michelson Alan D.