A Wayne State University School of Medicine infectious diseases specialist has published what is considered an authoritative guide to diagnosing and treating infection in immunosuppressed patients.

"Infections in the Immunosuppresed Patient: An Illustrated Case-Based Approach," by Pranatharthi Chandrasekar, M.D., professor of Internal Medicine and director of the Division of Infectious Diseases fellowship program, is expected to be released in February 2016.

Published by Oxford University Press, the 424-page book provides a case-based matrix for treatment of infections across all types of immunosuppressed patients. Comprising 81 cases from leading experts across specialties, the book offers a guide to both common and uncommon presentations of infections in cancer patients, solid-organ transplant recipients, stem-cell recipients, patients receiving immunosuppressive drugs and patients with other immunosuppressive conditions.

"As the challenges of managing these infections continue to evolve, I hope this collection offers lucid, authoritative guidance to diagnosing and treating these infections effectively," Dr. Chandrasekar said.

The publisher calls the book "the new benchmark reference work for treatment of these difficult cases."

Carol Kauffman, M.D., chief of the Infectious Diseases Section for the Veterans Affairs Ann Arbor Healthcare System and professor of Internal Medicine for the University of Michigan Medical School, praised the book.

"Dr. Chandrasekar has assembled a prestigious group of physicians who are experts in the care of immunosuppressed patients to share illustrative cases with the reader," she said. "The format is unique in that it is entirely case-based and illustrates common, but often extremely complex, clinical scenarios that reflect those seen in real life. These scenarios will be extremely useful, not only to clinicians, but also to teachers in the classroom and on consultation rounds."