This new manual is a practical, bedside guide to care of patients in the Pediatric ICU. Pediatric patients are very different than adults, and knowing this difference is never more critical than in the ICU. The fundamentals come first: sepsis, managing fluids and electrolytes, maintaining the airway and assessment of cardiovascular performance. After this, problems are organized by system: neurology, endocrine disorders, and the acute abdomen are a few of the topics covered. Trauma has a separate section, covering injuries to major body systems and injuries caused by burns, accidents, frostbite, lightening strikes and other events.

Following this, the manual has three outstanding and very useful features: a section on procedures, such as chest tube insertion and subdural taps; a pharmacopoeia, detailing the critical dosing numbers needed for safe, effective therapy; and a section with algorithms, including decision trees from the American Heart Association. In all, few manuals pack as much information, for such an attractive price, as this one.