David Eisner, The University of Manchester, UK

https://doi.org/10.36866/pn.113.50

A commonly accepted index of ageing is that police officers seem young. For me, a more relevant one might be that I can remember the original publication of this book, now in its sixth edition, in 1991. The current edition, authored by Neil Herring and David Paterson, includes a tribute to the author of the first five editions, Rod Levick.

Writing a book on cardiovascular physiology must be no easy task. A generation ago, it might have been possible for a physiologist to be conversant with much of cardiovascular physiology. Today, the subject has split into enormous and diverse subfields. How much does a jobbing cardiac cellular electrophysiologist know about areas such as capillary function, central control, endothelial biology and so forth? Indeed, keeping up with calcium cycling alone is a full-time business for me. It is very much to the credit of Levick (originally), and now Herring and Paterson, that they have the level of scholarship required.

One of the strengths of the original book was that it managed to serve many “markets.” This has been retained in the current version. It covers the cardiovascular system from the cellular properties of cardiac and vascular smooth muscle myocytes through organ level physiology and central regulation. While it provides a good introduction to the subject for undergraduates, it is equally useful for those starting a PhD. Indeed, in today’s multidisciplinary world, it makes a great introduction to cardiovascular physiology for the non-physiologist entering the cardiovascular field who wishes to understand the relevant physiology. It also does an excellent job of integrating the various systems. As someone who works at the cellular end of cardiac muscle, I benefit from regular reminders of the importance of interactions with blood vessels, the brain, and other systems. In particular, the chapter on coordinated cardiovascular responses helps knit things together very well.

The authors have very sensibly kept most of the text and diagrams from the previous edition. Many of the diagrams have been freshened with the use of full colour. Importantly, two new chapters have been added which introduce the experimental methods used in modern cardiovascular research. These will be of tremendous help in giving students an idea of how the results described in the book were obtained.

The Kindle version of the book is beautifully formatted. Not only is it very convenient to search for information, but it is weightless! Alternatively, purchase of the paper version provides a code for an e-book as well. Inevitably, it is difficult for a book covering the whole cardiovascular system to keep up with the pace of research. Having heard Maiken Nedergaard’s lecture at the conference Europhysiology 2018, the subject of the lymphatic drainage of the brain would benefit from more attention in the seventh edition. This, however, is very much a minor complaint. All in all, the authors deserve the gratitude of all their colleagues and students for updating an old favourite.