Book Review

Adolescent Health Care: A Practical Guide

N Engl J Med 2008; 359:1741October 16, 2008

Article

Adolescent Health Care: A Practical Guide
Fifth edition. Edited by Lawrence S. Neinstein, Catherine M. Gordon, Debra K. Katzman, David S. Rosen, and Elizabeth R. Woods. 1152 pp., illustrated. Philadelphia, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2008. $119. ISBN: 978-0-7817-9256-1

Adolescent Health Care is a comprehensive book that will be of considerable value to clinicians working with teenagers and young adults. This useful book begins with a solid overview of general considerations that are required to adequately understand, and to productively approach, adolescent health and to work with adolescent patients. Following this section of introductory chapters are 14 other sections, with chapters covering the full gamut of health concerns related to teenagers and young adults — from endocrinology, neurology, infectious disease, dermatology, and gynecology to the behavioral and psychosocial issues of obesity, sexuality, substance abuse, violence, and suicide. The comprehensive coverage of each topic is impressive, the information is current, the presentation is generally clear and straightforward, and the approach is pragmatic.

Equally important, most of the chapters in the book are well referenced, provide extensive lists of additional and supplemental readings, and list reasonably up-to-date Web sites for clinicians and for patients and their families. Furthermore, there are two very useful appendixes. The first contains an exhaustive list of references for clinicians and a number of useful readings for teenagers and their families. The second appendix is an extensive list of resources and services, including educational materials and manuals, hotlines, service organizations, adolescent health programs around the country, and Web-based resources. Although some of this information may become dated, the Web-based resources should be of particular value in helping readers find the most current information on a given topic as well as other available resources.

This book will be most useful as a reference guide for specific topics, and some of the material, especially the overview section, is worth reading for gaining a basic understanding of the developmental stage of adolescence and the general approach to adolescent health. For any clinician working with teenagers, young adults, and their families, Adolescent Health Care is a resource worth having.

Howard R. Spivak, M.D.
64 Sewall Ave., Brookline, MA 02446