Book Reviews

Laser Therapy – Clinical Practice and Scientific Background
Tunér, J. and Hode, L., (2002),
pp 570 with 1400 Refs.
Prima Books AB,
Grängesberg, Sweden

Reviewed by:
Raymond J. Lanzafame, MD, MBA, FACS
Clinical Journal of Laser Medicine & Surgery

The body of knowledge regarding the properties and uses of laser devices continues to expand and improve our understanding of the mechanisms involved. Several recent developments have expanded and intensified interest in furthering clinical applications in dentistry, dermatology, wound healing and other disciplines. The recent FDA approval of a few low power devices for LLLT is beginning to intensify interest in the United States. Work in these areas has been ongoing elsewhere in the world for more than 30 years.

Tunér and Hode have provided the reader with an excellent text which presents current information on a diverse array of laser related topics with a sound description of laser physics, light profiling and dosimetry. This second edition volume is a major advance over the predecessor, published in 1999.

The current offering has been upgraded to a full colour publication. It is printed on high quality paper with crisp graphics and a tabbed reference section. Each chapter follows a logical progression and presents the relevant research for each topical area and displays this information in a different coloured font. This later feature makes it quite simple for the reader to understand the scientific bases for the following discussion and to retrieve the relevant reference in the bibliography.

The bibliography consists of more than 1400 references. Each reference is numbered as it is cited in the text and a separate alphabetic listing is also provided.

Crisp graphics and easily read descriptions make this book easily understood by both the novice and the expert. It is clear that Tunér and Hode have produced a classic which should be a “must have” for the personal and institutional library.

This book is available for purchase from:

www.prima-books.com (ISBN: 91-631-1344-9)