The field of neonatology may safely be considered to have blossomed during the sixties. With increasing knowledge came the realization that study of the neonate could not be considered in the isolation of extrauterine existence. Both pediatricians and obstetricians gave more attention to the fetus. Thus, perinatology has emerged in the seventies.This is attested to by the appearance of the Journal of Perinatal Medicine in 1973, Clinics in Perinatology in 1974, and two books (reviews) on perinatology at the end of 1974. Both of these books have multiple contributors. One of the books is Modern Perinatal Medicine, edited by L. Gluck, and Clinical Perinatology is the other.Clinical Perinatology is directed toward obstetricians and pediatricians and provides a useful basic text on the subject. ( Modern Perinatal Medicine, on the other hand, seems to be directed more toward those working exclusively in this field.) The content is arranged logically, ranging from the opening chapter, "Physiology and Pathophysiology of Maternal Adjustments to Pregnancy," to the closing chapter, "Impact of Neonatal Intensive Care on Quality of Life." Most of it is eminently readable, though I labored a bit over "Perinatology: Legal and Ethical Considerations."There are some statements with which one may argue, e.g., "the cause of increased size in infants of diabetic mothers is not known" (chapter 1) and "hepatitis appears not to be transmitted to the fetus" (chapter 2). Other statements may be untrue, e.g., "severe neonatal jaundice can be precipitated by the competitive binding of sulfonamides" (p. 51). The author is correct in drawing attention to the danger of sulfonamides, but displacement of bilirubin (leading to kernicterus) is the problem, sometimes without significant jaundice.
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