This new edition represents a major departure from previous editions, in that most of the chapters and illustrations are not written by Dr Feigenbaum, but by his two coauthors. The format and writing style are different from previous editions, a result of what Dr Feigenbaum aptly described as ‘a change of guards’.
The book is well organized and comprehensive, with chapters ranging from the history of echocardiography to a comprehensive discussion of the role of echocardiography in congenital heart diseases. The writing is clear and easy to follow, complemented by numerous tables summarizing differential diagnoses and echocardiographic features. The references are selective and pertinent. In addition to high-quality illustrations, including both black and white, and colour figures, the book is accompanied by a DVD containing many freeze frames and numerous real-time clips. The comprehensive nature of the moving clips contained in the DVD is, indeed, outstanding, and drastically increases the educational value of the book. All the new innovations such as three-dimensional echocardiography and intracardiac echocardiography are included, and illustrated in the book and in the DVD. This book is also unique in that M-mode tracings continue to be used liberally, and important M-mode features are included in the discussion of many entities. This aspect of the book is surely a reflection of Dr Feigenbaum’s conviction that despite all the new advances, M-mode echocardiography continues to have a place and should be properly learned in the practice of echocardiography. This reviewer strongly shares this sentiment.
Several chapters are particularly well-presented. They are the chapters on the history of echocardiography (chapter 1), physics and instrumentation (chapter 2), coronary artery disease (chapter 15) and stress echocardiography (chapter 16). These chapters are clearly written, comprehensive and represent state-of-the-art reviews of these topics. However, the comprehensive nature of the book does not always allow for in-depth discussions, which may be required to provide a better understanding of the context in which some of the echocardiographic findings should be interpreted. For instance, in chapter 8, the discussion on tissue Doppler imaging of mitral annular velocities would benefit from a more detailed discussion, including the systolic velocity and the use of different locations on the mitral annulus. The normal ranges are different depending on the specific locations on the mitral annulus in which the velocities are obtained. Similarly, the inclusion of the concept of atrioventricular compliance in the assessment of mitral stenosis will enhance the understanding of the hemodynamics in this clinical setting. The figure in chapter 8 on pressure recovery is misleading. In discrete stenosis, the energy loss is not recovered downstream, such that the velocity downstream is low.
This is a welcomed new addition of the classic text on echocardiography. It is comprehensive, yet highly readable. A small detraction is that details and contextual data are lacking in the discussion of some of the conditions. I strongly recommend this book to all students of echocardiography.