When it was first published in 1982, The American Medical
Association Family Medical Guide set a new standard for depth,
authority, and accessibility. The completely updated and expanded third
edition of this landmark guide brings this bestselling medical home
reference into the nineties. It is simply the most useful, comprehensive
home health reference ever published, brought to you by the nation's
most respected medical authority.
This lavishly illustrated
volume, prepared by a a team of over forty distinguished medical
authorities under the direction of the American Medical Association,
incorporates the most significant trend in health care: wellness and
preventive medicine. It covers the sweeping revolution in technology and
puts more emphasis on the reader as a health-care consumer. It also
updates the information on the most prominent health issues of the
nineties, including Alzheimer's disease, AIDS, chronic fatigue syndrome,
stress, death and dying, drug abuse, and more.
The book is
divided into four sections for easy reference. Part I, "Your
Healthy body," contains specific tips you can use for preventive
self-care and encourages you to adopt a more healthy lifestyle, with
advice on diet, exercise, losing weight, reducing stress, and stopping
smoking. A full-color atlas of the human body shows you the location and
name of almost every organ, nerve, bone, and muscle.
Part II,
"Symptoms and Self-Diagnosis," provides the clearest, most
reliable aid for recognizing medical problems ever published for the
layperson. Over 165 pages of unique diagnostic symptom charts with clear
questions and yes/no answers will help you track down what a particular
symptom may signify and advise you whether it is something you may
safely treat yourself, a condition requiring a doctor's visit, or an
emergency requiring immediate medical attention.
Consistently
voted the book's most popular feature by readers' polls, these charts
alone can save you time and money by sparing you needless visits to the
doctor. Full-color photographs, used in conjunction with the charts,
will help you identify various conditions and decide when to seek
medical advice. An all-new diagnostic imaging section introduces
full-color images of ultrasound, Doppler, MRI, CT scans, and other
technologies that are becoming commonplace in doctors' offices and
hospitals.
Part III, "Diseases, Disorders, and Other
Problems," provides detailed, accessible, expertly illustrated
articles on more than 650 medical problems. Separate sections address
the special problems of men, women, couples, infants and children,
adolescents, and older people, including a comprehensive section on
pregnancy and childbirth.
Part IV of the guide, "Caring for
the Sick," covers all the basics of professional medical care, home
nursing, and caregiving. You'll learn how to choose a personal
physician, how to get the most out of your hospital's services, what
your rights as a patient are, and how to cope with a sick child or older
person or someone with a terminal illness. You'll also find a glossary
of over 300 medical terms and a color-coded section on first aid that
includes the most up-to-date CPR positions and other lifesaving
information.
The American Medical Association is committed to the
principle that, as patients and health consumers, we need to do all we
can to work more effectively with our physicians and health care teams.
This third edition of the Family Medical Guide -- easy to
understand, superbly designed, beautifully illustrated, and brimming
with up-to-date information -- will help you and your family stay
healthy and help you create an effective partnership with your doctor
when you need it. It belongs on every family's reference shelf.