Handbook of Syncope: A Concise Clinical Approach to the Patient

This Handbook was borne out of nearly two decades of observing medical students, residents, fellows, and busy clinicians in hospitals, outpatient offices, and emergency rooms encountering patients with syncope, and their uncertainty of how exactly to proceed. The Handbook strives to provide physicians-in-training and clinicians a succinct guide to those aspects that are most meaningful in arriving at the correct diagnosis. For today’s harried doctors, perpetually juggling time obligations, a greater reliance on tests, imaging, and investigations can be a natural outcome. For exactly this reason, the Handbook stresses the importance of a detailed history and thorough physical examination in reaching the correct diagnosis in syncopal patients. Because the ECG plays a central role, there are multiple examples provided with detailed descriptions. In cases of diagnostic uncertainty, the Handbook provides simple guidelines to allow recognition of higher risk patients who would benefit from further evaluation and hospital admission.