Oxford Handbook of Expedition and Wilderness Medicine

Abstract

Expeditions provide an opportunity for travelers to undertake various specialized travel to more adventurous wilderness and extreme destinations in the relative security of an expeditionary group, usually with medical cover, which is often provided by an expedition physician. Apart from major expeditionary organizations, such as the Royal Geographical Society, who have traditionally contributed guidelines in this area, 1 there have been few textbooks published on expedition and wilderness medicine. This first edition of the Oxford Handbook of Expedition and Wilderness Medicine, the 40th installment of the popular and respected Oxford Handbook series, is a major step forward in filling this gap. The Oxford Handbook of Expedition and Wilderness Medicine has a preface, a foreword, a dedication to Dr Bent Einer Juel‐Jensen, a table of contents, a table of detailed contents, a list of reviewers, a list of the 61 contributors, a list of symbols and abbreviations, 23 chapters, and a comprehensive index. It also includes numerous tables/figures and 12 color plates of common “spot” diagnoses. As is usual in this series, the handbook is compact and has a durable plastic “flexicover.” The back cover has a list of the major chapters in the book, although it would be useful to include the starting page reference. It may be useful to make use of the inside front cover, as has been done in other Oxford Handbooks, by listing, eg, major emergencies and the page references to find information to manage them. The handbook incorporates two trademark bookmark ribbons of different colors. The five editors, all from the UK, are well known in the field of expedition and wilderness medicine and related areas. Only 4 of the 61 contributors appear to reside outside the UK; however, they include a broad range of professionals with wide experience.