1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
3.0 out of 5 stars
Good information, remarkably poor writing, December 18, 2003
By A Customer
This review is from: Implantable Cardioverter-Defibrillator: A Practical Manual (Hardcover)
As a non-electrophysiologist (but physician and biophysicist), needing an understanding of ICD programming, I purchased this book. Judging from the preface, I would have thought I was close to the target reader. I was primarily looking for an explantion of the programming of arrhythmia detection settings. Some, but not all, of the information I need is there.
There is too much historical introduction. When the core concepts arise, there isn't enough explanation. The author assumes arbitrary a priori familiarity with many of the concepts and jargon particular to ICD's. Typical paragraphs dig into details without first explaining the core concepts. In many areas, the prose is annoyingly obscure. The author sometimes provides enough information to figure out what he is saying, but it would have been easier if he had simply explained the concepts in the first place. A trained technical writer, or at least a pre-publication review by a member of the target audience, could have measurably improved this work. ICD manuals are somewhat better written, though necessarily parochial.
It's probably a fairly good book if you already know enough that you don't need it. Unfortunately, I cannot currently suggest a better alternative.
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