Book excerpt: Acute Renal Failure in Practice, edited by practising renal physicians, is the essential guide to the clinical management of patients with acute renal failure and its complex, life-threatening metabolic sequelae. This book explains the workings of the normal kidney, illustrates the aetiology and pathophysiology of acute renal disease, and provides practical treatment guidelines relevant to the day-to-day needs of the practising clinician. There is a clear emphasis on the underlying pathogenic mechanisms naturally leading to a full understanding of the rationale behind the recommended treatments. Each chapter is illustrated throughout by coloured tables and diagrams, and incorporates unique easy-to-follow “practice points” algorithms which detail, step-by-step, the precise treatment protocols required to succeed in caring for these complex patients. An entire section is dedicated to dealing with patients who develop acute renal failure in specific hospital settings, such as the labour ward or intensive care unit. Doctors working in a wide range of acute medical specialities frequently encounter patients with acute renal failure and will therefore find this an invaluable clinical handbook./a