ERS Handbook of Paediatric Respiratory Medicine

By Jorrit Gerritsen

About 50–60 years ago, paediatricians started to specialise in paediatric respiratory diseases and established the European Paediatric Respiratory Society (EPRS). In the early years of the European Respiratory Society (ERS), Max Zach took the initiative to join the ERS and convince all the members of the EPRS. He founded the Paediatric Assembly and was its first head. He also was active in the European Union of Medical Specialists (UEMS) and European Accreditation Council for CME (EACCME) and worked hard for the recognition of Paediatric Respiratory Diseases as a sub-speciality of Paediatrics. Max Zach, together with the Long Range Planning Committee, published the first syllabus on Paediatric Respiratory Training in Europe in the European Respiratory Journal [1]. Subsequently, the Paediatric Assembly joined the HERMES (Harmonised Education in Respiratory Medicine for European Specialists) initiative followed by the first exams in 2012.

In 2010, the first edition of the ERS Handbook of Respiratory Medicine [2], edited by Paolo Palange and Anita Simmonds, was launched at the ERS Annual Congress in Barcelona. In response to this, the Paediatric Assembly felt the need for a corresponding book; and the ERS Handbook on Paediatric Respiratory Medicine, edited by Ernst Eber and Fabio Midulla, was launched in 2013 at the ERS Annual Congress in Barcelona.

It is very good to see that so many clinicians involved in paediatric pulmonary diseases contributed to this first edition of the handbook and it reflects the hard work of and the scientific potential in the paediatric assembly.

This handbook covers all aspects of paediatric respiratory medicine and the information is very well presented. This holistic approach is the basis for this handbook as a guideline to the preparation for the HERMES exam. However, in fact it is applicable not only for this purpose but is also excellent for the use in daily practice. In several chapters, clear guidelines are given, which can be implemented, while other chapters give more theoretical background.

Like in all handbooks, the weakness is the clarity of the presentation of the figures and radiographs, but this is compensated by the availability of this information as a PDF file, in which the figures and radiographs can be enlarged and studied in more detail.

With so many contributors, some overlap is unavoidable, especially when authors are involved in more than one chapter and, sometimes, they focus too much on their own research and fail to give the reader the necessary broad view of their topic.

The CME questions for each chapter are very well drafted and give an indication of the questions which can be expected in the Paediatric HERMES exam.

Overall, the editors have done an excellent job. The book is practical and provides the reader with up-to-date information on all aspects of respiratory medicine in children.

Although handbooks with more extensive and more detailed information remain necessary, this book should be at hand for every clinician working in the field of respiratory medicine in children and is an excellent book for reference and quick consultation.

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