Physiotherapy June 2001/vol 87/no 6

331Book reviews

Michael Joseph, London2000 (ISBN 0 718 14423 6). Illus. 176 pages.

by Brooke Siler £12.99 It is refreshing to be asked to review a book on Pilates thatgives full credit to the work of Joseph Hubertus Pilateshimself. For those of you who have only encountered Pilatesas the commercial offerings in fitness videos, your gym or onthe back of your cereal packet -- this new book is trulydescended from the original work and has an enviablepedigree. However, in its faithfulness to the original, much of the exercise material is more aspirational andinspirational, and not fully accessible to the averagephysiotherapy client.

This book covers the entire matwork series of JosephPilates, plus standing, advanced and cool-down exercises.Each exercise is clearly presented, over a full double page,describing the movement sequence step by step.Communication of the Pilates mind-body concept is greatlyenhanced by the visualisation prompts, diagrams andexcellent photography.

Those readers who are already familiar with a musclebalance approach to injury management will recognise thecore stabilisation principles that lie central to the Pilatesmethod. The real success of using Pilates as part of aphysiotherapy rehabilitation programme is in stimulatingvisualisation and connection to the hard-to-access posturalmuscles.

In reviewing this book I enlisted the help of several of mypatients while they were recovering from back, knee andshoulder problems. I invariably introduce segmental spinalstabilisation training (Richardson et al, 1999) to my patients

at an early stage of their rehabilitation, often under the guiseof remedial Pilates. The early chapters of this book wereuniversally well received by my patients. The description ofthe Pilates mind-body philosophy and the highlighting offailings in the gym-based 1980s style of ‘no gain withoutpain’ exercise were often deemed worth the cover pricealone.

However, from a physiotherapy perspective even the veryfirst exercise in the ‘modified beginner’ section is beyondthe reach of any individual with dysfunctional lumbarextension control. This is not, therefore, a book torecommend indiscrimmately without first being fullyfamiliar with its excellent content.

Overall, this is an excellent and well presented book, arecommended text on the Pilates Foundation teachertraining course. But prescribe with care and try Pilates onyour own body first!

John Stephenson MSc MCSP MMACP

The Pilates Body

The ultimate at-home guide tostrengthening, lengthening and toningyour body – Without machines

Rolling like a ball – a beginner’s exercise in ‘The Pilates Body’. Thesketch is accompanied by four sequential photographs of a youngwoman performing the movements on a mat. A suggested addedchallenge is ‘Try placing your head between your knees andwrapping your arms around your legs’

Wiley, Chichester1999 (ISBN 0 471 560 19 7). 306 pages

edited by Stephen J Bull £24.95This book addresses the important issue of exerciseadherence, in both sport and healthcare settings. Its statedintention is to target all those interested in the theory andpracticalities of adherence issues in sport and rehabilitationexercise. As such, it aims to reach a varied readership; it iswritten in accessible language, avoiding excessive use ofjargon, and provides extensive references for those who wishto pursue the chapter topics in greater depth.

The book is logically organised, moving from theoreticalpsychosocial concepts to issues surrounding exerciseadherence in a variety of health and sport contexts, andfinally to exploring the potential for different approaches inthe study of adherence.

The first two chapters examine psychosocial issues,considering social influences on exercise involvement(chapter 1) and the transtheoretical model of behaviourchange, applying evidence from previous research on use of the model to its potential as a framework to deliverinterventions to promote regular exercise (chapter 2).

The next two chapters examine adherence to exercise inprimary healthcare, and in a variety of clinical populations.The former chapter explores the extent to which exercisepromotion occurs in primary healthcare settings, and it

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reviews the barriers to both promotion and uptake ofexercise interventions, and the evidence for theireffectiveness. Chapter 4 explores the evidence for theintroduction of exercise for various clinical populations(cardiovascular/pulmonary diseases, metabolic diseases,orthopaedic diseases and disabilities and mental health) andissues surrounding long-term adherence.

Chapters 5 to 8 study adherence in the context of sportand physical activity. The current concern over the relativelack of physical activity in children, and the increasingprevalence of coronary risk factors and obesity in youngpeople is the focus of chapter 5, which also considersadherence in terms of ‘lifetime sports’. The next chapterreviews the state of knowledge on adherence to sports injuryrehabilitation programmes. Chapters 7 and 8 reviewadherence-related research in relation to psychologicalpreparation for sports performance, and the authorspropose a model of adherence to psychological preparation.Environmental influences on adherence such as coachesand parents are also examined.

The final three chapters tend to concentrate more on

methodological issues, examining the role of sport andexercise psychologists in the delivery of counsellinginterventions by exploring the client-practitionerinteraction. The author describes the use of collaboration(working with another to review and alter aspects ofpractice) and reflection (individuals reviewing their ownpractice) to promote adherence to changing practice. Thefinal chapter reviews qualitative and quantitative techniquesto investigate adherence issues in sport and exercise.

Although this book has a bias towards the sportspsychologists’ view of adherence to exercise, there is a largeamount of relevant information which will promoteunderstanding of the problems surrounding adherence toexercise programmes in physiotherapy practice. The book iseasy to read, and each chapter is comprehensivelyreferenced with up-to-date literature.

Overall, this is a useful book for all those involved inexercise and rehabilitation programmes, whether in thecontext of sport, primary care or hospital-based practice.

Kate Kerr PhD BA MCSP

Butterworth-Heinemann, Oxford2001 (ISBN 0 7506 2963 0). Illus. 246 pages

edited by Harry von Piekartz and Lynn Bryden £32.50Maybe it was the sequence of concepts in the subtitle thatdampened my enthusiasm for reviewing this book, or thebook itself spoilt much of what started off with a very goodidea. It aims to introduce manual therapists to the issue ofthe very much neglected cranial tissue or rather what liesabove the atlanto-axial joint that could be the cause ofcraniofacial dysfunction and pain.

The book has contributions from 12 authors in as manychapters and was edited by the two who are named on thecover. The wealth of knowledge from these different authorsmakes it initially interesting but it is difficult to read becauseof the various styles and lack of editing continuity. The bestchapter is the first: ‘Skull growth in relation to mechanicalstimulation’ which I would recommend as compulsoryreading to every physiotherapist.

The rest of the book assumes a foundation knowledge ofcranial dynamics and puts emphasis on how to applytreatment leaving the issue of assessment somewhat ignored– as the editing author von Piekartz puts it: ‘One of our basicobjectives was to initiate the standardisation of cranial

manual techniques within manual therapy for variouspatient groups.’ To aim for standardisation in theapplication of cranial therapy misses the whole point of the cranial system, which as the book rightly points out is ‘spontaneous and unpredictable’. The statement: ‘The cranium provides an ideal container for the CSF(cerebrospinal fluid)’ is misleading and a simplification ofthe important fact that the circulation of the CSF extends tothe sacrum.

For someone familiar with the craniosacral field no newinformation could be gained from this book although thecopious references are informative.

Most photographs are professionally realised and helpfuldespite the fact that the finger position on the skull/modeldoes not always synchronise; the illustrations run the wholegamut from being a needed visual aid to the text to makingthings confusing.

The book is nicely bound in an attractive soft cover, the text set in two columns with an easy-on-the-eye font. It is intended for physiotherapists, dentists, orthodontists,ENT specialists, neurologists, maxillofacial surgeons,chiropractors and osteopaths and could certainly beunderstood by this group of people although I doubt if any of them would need to have ‘tonsillectomy’ explainedin the otherwise useful glossary.

The subject of the book would make enlightened readingfor a manual therapist who dismisses the cranial issue, eventhough it gives only a very limited glimpse towards thepossibilities of facilitation via the craniosacral system.

Franziska Holmes MCSP CST

Craniofacial Dysfunction andPain

Manual therapy, assessment andmanagement