Differential Diagnosis of Arrhythmias, 2d ed.

In the second edition of Differential Diagnosis of Arrhythmias, Dale Davis offers an excellent step-by-step approach to learning and mastering the skill of electrocardiogram (ECG) interpretation. The first chapter begins with the basics of cardiac anatomy, electrophysiology, electrical conduction through the normal heart, and electrode placement. These concepts are presented through color anatomic drawings accompanied by ECG strips and the criteria used for differential diagnosis. The nine chapters that follow cover premature and escape beats; atrial, junctional, and venticular rhythms; aberrant beats; blocks; and Wolff-Parkinson-Whit syndrome. Each arrhythmia is presented with a color illustration of the electrical conduction system, which shows the responsible defect and which is accompanied by review and practice ECG strips and differential criteria.

The abundance of easily understood illustrations with clear, concise descriptions is the major strength of this text. There are 169 illustrations and 234 practice ECG strips, including 99 review strips and answers in the final chapter alone. These numerous illustrations and simple, concise wording make an excellent text for any health care professional who is a novice at ECG interpretation. The number of ECG review strips will also provide a good review for more experienced clinicians who want to maintain or sharpen their interpretive skills.

This is a very user-friendly text that anyone interested in arrhythmia recognition and interpretation should find useful.