WHY THIS BOOK IS UNIQUE
It is dedicated to the outstanding pioneers in gynecology.
(1) Sir John (Jack) Dewhurst (1920 - 2006).
Pioneer in Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology, President RCOG, Professor University of London and Queen Charlotte’s
Hospital for Women.
(2) Hugh
R.K. Barber (1918-2006). Professor and Director of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Lenox Hill Hospital, NYC
for an unprecedent 34 years (1963-1997) at the insistence of the entire attending staff, leading authority in ovarian cancer,
prolific author and teacher. He was one of the first to point out the vague gastrointestinal symptoms of early ovarian cancer.
Chapter 51 on the The History of Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology in the United States by Alvin F. Goldfarb, MD
who dedicated himself to establish the North American Society of Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology (NASPAG).
This first hand account is of historic importance. He passed away before he could see the printers
proofs.
Chapter 52 is by Irmi Rey-Stocker, emeritus Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Lausanne, Switzerland.
It is a comprehensive, detailed first hand History of the International Federation of Infantile and Juvenile Gynecology
(FIGIJ) of which she was an officer. European medical societies were established long before those in the
U.S. In the 1970’s she was on my visiting faculty Postgraduate Course in N.Y.C. and I had the pleasure
of speaking at the FIGIJ conferences in Europe.
I have personally conducted 3 pediatric
adolescent gynecology clinics indifferent hospitals (20 years at Lenox Hill Hospital) as well as a continuous private consultation
where there was long term follow up.
This enabled unique long term,
observations of the same patients regarding the approach to the young patient and the opportunity to discover unrecognized
conditions not yet described in other books including:
- Atopic dermatitis of the vulva
- Prepubertal distal longitudinal folds
- Unilateral benign tumors of the labia majora
These conditions may be confused with malignancies
and sexual molestations.
The introduction which emphasizes:
- Education for life, avoiding school dropouts, avoiding unwanted pregnancy, avoiding
substance abuse, etc.
- Being aware of sexual slavery of the young especially with runaways, with brutality, and drug addiction which exists
in the US, as well as the world. This is first being recognized.
The book emphasizes that the adolescent gradually tends to be lost from medical supervision and routine care as she
outgrows the pediatrician and has not continued with the adolescent medicine physician. One approach is
to keep being seen as a routine procedure for routine checkups, and routine vaccinations (such as meningitis, human papilloma
virus, etc.); and preparation for out of town college.
It is the only book to include
the concept of the young adult.
The contributing authors are experienced
clinicians and teachers.
The foreward was written by Alan De Cherney, MD, Head, Program in Reproduction and Adult Gynecology, National Institute
of Child Health and Human Development, National Institute of Health. He wrote: “This
is the only text that one would need to care for this group of patients.” “A unique element
of this book is that it represents years of experience on the part of the authors.” This is intangible
information and raises the awareness that, no matter how great the technology gets, there is nothing better than experience:
This vignette is a gem!! The book is now being transmitted into Russian.
A book review in Fertility and Sterility, October 2009, noted that “… there are 52 chapters comprising
500 pages, and all are easy to read and comprehend. Not only are medical issues addressed and the pathophysiology
of the disorders described, but the psychological and social implications are presented as well.
As a fellowship-trained pediatric and adolescent gynecologist, I have found this textbook to be a complete resource
on the subject. It joins other texts on pediatric and adolescent gynecology as useful references for both
the generalist and the specialist alike. It adds the perspective of young adult issues, which has not been
addressed previously. I highly recommend this time to those in training and those in practice who see any
pediatric, adolescent, or young adult women.
