John Murtagh's General Practice

The reference GPs rely on when practical experience counts.

Description
John Murtagh's General Practice is widely recognized as the most influential publication for general practice and primary health care. Now in its fifth edition, this gold standard reference comprehensively covers the entire spectrum of general practice.

Key Features
'three new chapters covering `Infections of the central nervous system,' `refugee health' and `Colloquial expressions in medicine'
'expanded coverage with two chapters on `Travel Medicine' and `Tropical medicine and the returned traveller'
'expanded coverage with two chapters on 'The menopause' and 'Osteoporosis'
'an increased focus on evidenced-based medicine
'updated and peer reviewed to reflect the latest medical developments
'insightful coverage of conditions that clinicians see, and often struggle with, in daily practice
'with over 80 new photographs and illustrations, there are now more than 800 full-colour visual references

Praise for John Murtagh

'You only need to look at how he writes his books to see that he is a great educator and a wonderful general practitioner who teaches in a very practical, intelligent and focused way,' Michael Kidd, in Australian Doctor 2005 (as President of the RACGP)

'Murtagh's textbooks and his teaching are equally legendary. General Practice, Patient Education and Practice Tips have sold more than 50,000 copies excluding nine language translations and several English reprints in India.' John Murtagh was in the top 10 of Australian Doctor's 50 most influential people in general practice 2005.

'The JK Rowling of General Practice', John Murtagh was listed in Australian Doctor's top 50 most influential people in general practice 2010.

Professor Claire Jackson, professor of General Practice, University of Queensland medical school and RACGP president-elect, on her choice of John Murtagh as the most influential person in general practice (printed in Australian Doctor, 50 Most Influential people supplement, July 2010):

'His life's passion is building the general practice model and on general practice teaching based on a whole lot of pragmatic experience and good practical frameworks'

General Practice was described as 'the authoritative source for both established GPs and those starting out; the book has a place in just about every GP surgery in the country.'

About the Authors

The renowned John Murtagh is Emeritus Professor in General Practice at Monash University; Professorial Fellow of General Practice at the University of Melbourne; Adjunct Clinical Professor in the Graduate School of Medicine, the University of Notre Dame and Guest Professor at Peking University Health Science Centre, Beijing.

This new edition benefits from the contributions of Dr Jill Rosenblatt as a second medical author and editor. Dr Rosenblatt is a General Practitioner and Adjunct Senior Lecturer in the School of Primary Health Care at Monash University whose wealth of rural and urban experience adds a new level of authority to this respected work.

Table of contents


Part 1 The basis of general practice

1 The nature and content of general practice

2 The family

3 Consulting skills

4 Communication skills

5 Counselling skills

6 Difficult, demanding and angry patients

7 Health promotion and patient education

8 The elderly patient

9 Prevention in general practice

10 Nutrition in health and illness

11 Palliative care

12 Pain and its management

13 Research and evidence-based medicine

14 Travel medicine

15 Tropical medicine and the returned traveller

16 Laboratory investigations

17 Inspection as a clinical skill

18 A safe diagnostic strategy

19 Genetic conditions
Part 2 Diagnostic perspective in general practice

20 Depression

21 Diabetes mellitus: diagnosis

22 Drug problems

23 Anaemia

24 Thyroid and other endocrine disorders

25 Spinal dysfunction

26 Urinary tract infection

27 Malignant disease

28 HIV/AIDS'could it be HIV?

29 Baffling viral and protozoal infections

30 Baffling bacterial infections

31 Infections of the central nervous system

32 Chronic kidney failure

33 Connective tissue disease and the vasculitides

34 Neurological dilemmas
Part 3 Problem solving in general practice

35 Abdominal pain

36 Arthritis

37 Anorectal disorders

38 Thoracic back pain

39 Low back pain

40 Bruising and bleeding

41 Chest pain

42 Constipation

43 Cough

44 Deafness and hearing loss

45 Diarrhoea

46 The disturbed patient

47 Dizziness/vertigo

48 Dyspepsia (indigestion)

49 Dysphagia

50 Dyspnoea

51 The painful ear

52 The red and tender eye

53 Pain in the face

54 Fever and chills

55 Faints, fits and funny turns

56 Haematemesis and melaena

57 Headache

58 Hoarseness

59 Jaundice

60 Nasal disorders

61 Nausea and vomiting

62 Neck lumps

63 Neck pain

64 Shoulder pain

65 Pain in the arm and hand

66 Hip, buttock and groin pain

67 Pain in the leg

68 The painful knee

69 Pain in the foot and ankle

70 Walking difficulty and leg swelling

71 Palpitations

72 Sleep disorders

73 Sore mouth and tongue

74 Sore throat

75 Tiredness/fatigue

76 The unconscious patient

77 Urinary disorders

78 Visual failure

79 Weight gain

80 Weight loss
Part 4 Child and adolescent health

81 An approach to the child

82 Specific problems of children

83 Surgical problems in children

84 Common childhood infectious diseases (including skin eruptions)

85 Behaviour disorders in children

86 Child abuse

87 Emergencies in children

88 Adolescent health
Part 5 Women's health

89 Cervical cancer and Pap smears

90 Family planning

91 Breast pain (mastalgia)

92 Lumps in the breast

93 Abnormal uterine bleeding

94 Lower abdominal and pelvic pain in women

95 Premenstrual syndrome

96 The menopause

97 Osteoporosis

98 Vaginal discharge

99 Vulvar disorders

100 Domestic violence and sexual assault

101 Basic antenatal care

102 Infections in pregnancy

103 High-risk pregnancy

104 Postnatal care
Part 6 Men's health

105 Men's health: an overview

106 Scrotal pain

107 Inguinoscrotal lumps

108 Disorders of the penis

109 Disorders of the prostate
Part 7 Sexually related problems

110 The subfertile couple

111 Sexual health

112 Sexually transmitted infections
Part 8 Problems of the skin

113 A diagnostic and management approach to skin problems

114 Pruritus

115 Common skin problems

116 Acute skin eruptions

117 Skin ulcers

118 Common lumps and bumps

119 Pigmented skin lesions

120 Hair disorders

121 Nail disorders
Part 9 Chronic disorders: continuing management

122 Alcohol problems

123 Allergic disorders including hay fever

124 Anxiety disorders

125 Asthma

126 Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

127 Epilepsy

128 Hypertension

129 Dyslipidaemia

130 Diabetes mellitus: management

131 Chronic heart failure
Part 10 Accident and emergency medicine

132 Emergency care

133 The doctor's bag and other emergency equipment

134 Stroke and transient ischaemic attacks

135 Thrombosis and thromboembolism

136 Common skin wounds and foreign bodies

137 Common fractures and dislocations

138 Common sporting injuries
Part 11 Health of specific groups

139 The health of Indigenous peoples

140 Refugee health

141 Catchy metaphors, similes and colloquial expressions in medicine

Appendix

Index