Foreword to the second edition

In his foreword for Trauma Anesthesia, Adolph H. (Buddy) Giesecke, MD opened with the following statement: “Dr. Charles E. Smith has been inspiring improved anesthesia for the victims of traumatic injuries for many years…” This premise rings as true now as it did then. Based at Metro Health Medical Center and Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine in Cleveland, Ohio, Dr. Smith continues to be a respected lecturer and prolific author of trauma-related studies and publications. His expertise in the anesthesia care of the trauma patient supports his reputation and is well exemplified by his major contributions to this book. As with the original volume, he has chosen a group of highly respected authors who add significant substance to this new edition. Trauma Anesthesia, Second Edition is an engaging and informative read. It should become part of the armamentarium of all those who aspire to better care for the patient who has suffered a traumatic injury. Appropriately, this book begins by providing the reader with an overview of the epidemiology of trauma. We quickly understand the cost of trauma, not only to the individual patient, but also to society in general. The book then moves from this broad topic to those which are more specific, allowing the reader the opportunity to review particular aspects of traumatic injury and then to see specific examinations of how one may best provide anesthetic care for these patients. It is accepted that anesthesia care for the patient with traumatic injuries has continued to evolve since the first edition of Trauma Anesthesia. Mirroring this evolution of anesthesia care, the information provided within this book has kept pace with those changes. Examinations of fluid resuscitation of the trauma patient, the continued fine-tuning of massive transfusion protocols, and an ongoing analysis of damage control in severe trauma are all included here. Another hot topic included in this book is monitoring of the trauma patient. There continues to be considerable morbidity associated with traumatic injuries. Besides discussions of chronic pain in the trauma survivor, the science of injury prevention is presented.