Stroke Sourcebook.

Stroke Sourcebook

Shannon JB, ed. Detroit, MI 48226, Omnigraphics, 2003, hardcover, 595 pp, illus, ISBN: 0-7808-0630-1, $78.

This collection of articles and other educational publications on stroke is an informative resource for people who have had a stroke and their families who are trying to come to grips with the stroke and to understand the process of stroke care and rehabilitation. Some portions of the book also may be educational for health care professionals who are seeking updated knowledge on stroke treatments and recent research.

The Stroke Sourcebook is organized into 7 parts. Part I, "The Basics of Stroke," includes current statistics, mostly from 2002, on stroke in the United States, and it explains the types of stroke, giving special attention to pediatric stroke. Part II, "Stroke Triggers and Risks," thoroughly describes known and possible risk factors for stroke such as atherosclerosis, hypercholesterolemia, hypertension, diabetes, smoking, use of oral contraceptives, postmenopausal hormone therapy, obesity, physical inactivity and sleep disorders. This section also describes medical tests available to predict a person's stroke risk. Part III, "Diagnosis and Treatments for Stroke," explains the medical tests that are used to diagnose a stroke, and the newer drug therapy that uses tissue plasminogen activator (tPA). This part also describes an interesting use of ultra sound waves that is proposed to improve blood flow to the brain and surgical interventions such as implantation of neurons into stroke-damaged brain areas and implantation of medication pellets into the brain to prevent complications following subarachnoid hemorrhage repair.

Part IV, "Stroke Recovery and Rehabilitation," is targeted mostly to patients who have had a stroke and their caregivers and provides information highlighting the roles of physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech-language therapy, and nutrition therapy. Tips to improve independence in activities of daily living, although written for people with Parkinson disease, may be helpful for some readers to supplement their own therapist's recommendations. Part V, "Stroke Prevention," revisits some of the stroke risk factors and discusses what people can do to reduce their risk of a stroke. Part VI, "Legal and Financial Information for Stroke Survivors," familiarizes the reader with the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), Social Security disability benefits, advance directives, and living wills. Finally, part VII, "Additional Help and Information," provides a thorough glossary of stroke-related terms, a directory of government agencies and organizations, and a listing of stroke research centers for anyone who wants to look further into this area.

The Stroke Sourcebook is a good reference for anyone seeking clear, up-to-date facts about strokes. This book would be an excellent addition to any patient resource library. Because it is a collection of reprinted materials from a variety of sources, however, the book is sometimes redundant and some topics are limited in scope by the literature used. Although it is largely written with basic terminology, some sections are more technical and would be more interesting to the health care professional than to the general public.

Janice Bohn, PT, NCS 

Alexian Rehabilitation Hospital

Elk Grove Village, Ill

Ms Bohn is a physical therapy clinical facilitator and clinician who is primarily responsible for the rehabilitation of patients with neurological conditions and the education of therapy staff.