Practical Electrocardiography

Title	Practical Electrocardiography	20%discount and Free Postage anywhere in India
Author	SN Chugh
Publisher	Peepee Publishers and Distributors
ISBN	81-88867-01-2
Price	Rs 175 (Rs 140 after discount)
Type of Book	Textbook
Exams covered	All Exams
Subjects covered	ECG, EKG, Electrocardiogram
Intended for	Undergraduates, Clinicians PG Entrance, Post Graduates and Physicians	Can be Used for	Undergraduates, Clinicians PG Entrance, Post Graduates and Physicians
Impressed with	1. The Price - a colour book at this low price is something groovy 2. The Quality of Paper and Printing 3. That ECG gives only “patterns” and the diagnosis needs clinical correlation is stressed throughout 4. Summaries at the end of topics, which are not mere repetitions of words, but tend to revise “from the other way” and thus helping the student get a clear idea at diagnosis	Areas for Improvement	1. Line drawings are good. Can be better !! 2. The ECG is not clear in few pages (probably scanned at the last moment by the desktop scanner !!) for example in pages 148, 198 3. Spelling Mistakes - though they are easy to spot and inconsequential (Atriovrntricular bundle - for example)
Review	There can be two approaches to the clinical electrocardiography. One like an “empirist”, is to memorise the normal and different abnormal positions and compare the ECG of a given patient with the patterns already memorised - the so called “Bird Watching” Technique (by AC Burton). The other more scientific way is to attempt to interpret the ECG from the fundamental knowledge of Cardiac Electrophysiology. In the western medical setup, Electrocardiography, (ECG or EKG) is a specialist’s investigation. Those concerned with it are either specialists or technicians. All that another medical man is expected to know is to recognise that the ST Segment is not at its place, but has gone up or down and then he duly forwards the onus of the patient care to a specialist. Needless to say the western books that deal with ECG fall in either of two categories. One group suits the technicians, who know very little electrophysiology (and care little about it) and thus books that give a little fundamental knowledge are enough for them. (for “birdwatching”!!) The other genre is for the Cardiologist and these books deal with so many facts. An Indian undergraduate student or Intern who takes this book to know something about ECG is easily put off when he finds that he has read the book for one week and is yet dealing with the equations telling why augmented leads are one and half times that of Standard leads and the importance of the tracer fitting too tight or too loose on the Paper. There are of course exception, with few books (one by Goldberger for example), which are suited for the Undergraduate Student and Intern and Clinicians. But the glitch is that those books, though very cheap when bought with pounds and dollars, become costly affairs for us who have to buy them with the Indian Rupee. Indian books, on the other hand are either too costly (some even more costly than western books) or come in awfully printed state, where in the diagrams and images you often see only the Squares and one has to be Sherlock Holmes to be able to find a tracing there. Practical Electrocardiography by Dr.S.N.Chugh publised by Peepee Publishers offers a cheap yet beautifully printed book ideal for an aspirant of PG Entrance Exams. Not only it gives the basics of the ECG, but it also deals with the finer aspects of this wonderful investigation. Some thing that is worth mentioning is the “Flow Chart” like summaries given at the end of topics that help one clinch a diagnosis with ease. For example In AV Blocks · When R-R Interval is Regular, it is either I degree or III Degree (complete) AV Block o I Degree Heart Block § PR Interval same § P Followed by QRS more than 0.20 sec duration o III Degree Heart block § PR Variable § More than one P for Every Q § P and QRS independent · PR Interval Irregular Implies II Degree AV Block o Mobitz Type I § P-R Interval Changes o Mobitz Type II § Fixed PR Interval As with other book, the highlights of every pattern are given and Discussion about Stress and Ambulatory ECG and ECG in Non Cardiac Conditions and Artificial Pacemakers ensure that you will hardly get a question in ECG in PG Entrance Exams out of this book There is one more fact that is attractive. The cover price of Rs 175 (Rs 140 when you get it from the publisher) means you can get this book at a reasonable price after discount and at this price, with this reasonably good printing quality and lucid presentation, this book is a good one to be on your reading table
Highlights	Though printed and presented well in spite of being comfortably priced, this book does not ignore facts. In addition to the routine points that are given in book so similar size and kind, the author steps further to tell us academic and anecdotal facets of this interesting subject of ECG for example Katz-watchel phenomenon is a state of biventricular hypertrophy where the transition zone remains at Normal Position.
Reviewed on	April 18th 2004	Reviewed by	Post Graduates in General Medicine and Cardiology