The revision of this definitive, two-volume reference work is dedicated to the maintenance of a comprehensive approach to the practice of pediatric gastroenterology. The text of the fifth edition was extensively reviewed to assess the continuing relevance and, as a result, the size and content of various sections have been modified and new chapters have been added. Each author, selected because of particular expertise in the field, has provided an authoritative and comprehensive account of his or her topic. In addition, new sections have been added to reflect the expanding complexity of the field, particularly new techniques now used to accurately establish complex diagnoses. As with previous editions, the size and content of each section has been modified and new chapters added to reflect an increasing evolution of subspecialty programs within gastroenterology and a better understanding of subspecialty conditions (motility, inflammation, and autoimmune bowel disease) that have emerged in pediatric gastroenterology. As the importance of genetics and molecular biology in the pathophysiology and diagnosis of complex pediatric conditions of the gut, pancreas, and liver have become appreciated, expanded chapters cover their importance in the field. Furthermore, a more comprehensive representation of world leaders in pediatric gastroenterology among the editors of this edition has expanded the authorship to reflect experts in specific diseases within various continents rather than principally in North America. In other words, the edition is dedicated to a comprehensive, worldwide approach to the practice of pediatric gastroenterology.
