Sick Kids Handbook of Pediatric Thrombosis and Hemostasis

Victor S. Blanchette, Leonardo R. Brandao, Vicky R. Breakey, Shoshana Revel-Vilk (eds). Karger, Basel, 2017. 338pp, price not mentioned. TSBN 978–3–318–03026–6.

This book is designed as a practical handbook by alumni of the fellowship in Thrombosis and Hemostasis from the Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Canada. These are leading experts in the field and this book is targeted to fill the gaps where other resource material is not available.

The theme of the revised and expanded, second edition of this book is to give practical and evidence-based guidelines for the diagnosis and management of children with disorders of bleeding or thrombosis, as both are serious conditions and expertise is limited to a few centres. The chapters start with basic science sections and then move to common clinical conditions, and then rarer conditions. Unfortunately, not much evidence for management of thrombosis in children is available; many guidelines extrapolate adult data. So in lieu of large studies that are required, but difficult to conduct due to infrequent cases and variability in treatment, the book and consensus is important.

The book provides a good review of current information on the aetiology of many conditions and a step-wise approach to diagnosis, including lucid algorithms for work-up in scenarios such as a bleeding neonate. The information on rare factor deficiencies is useful as most articles in journals refer only to single disorders. The chapter on acquired bleeding provides a useful comprehensive list and description of common conditions. The chapters on thrombosis are written in a lucid style with an analytical approach to evaluation.

Several lacunae include no consideration to countries with limited resources, where many tests and molecular work-up may not be available. The bleeding assessment tools are provided only for immune thrombocytopenia and the more established and necessary tools for assessment in haemophilia are not alluded to. The chapter on management of haemophilia does not discuss the treatment of patients using inhibitors, which is a serious complication of haemophilia. All centres that treat patients with haemophilia need to be aware of this problem and its treatment— immune tolerance induction and management of bleeding with bypassing agents would have made the chapter much stronger.

The book is a good resource for clinicians on how to treat and investigate children with haematological conditions either inherited or acquired. A very readable style and collation of correct and up- to -date material make this an excellent resource. It has insufficient material for pathologists who need to establish the assays.