Book and Product Reviews

Paediatric Surgery

2nd Edition

Edited by Mark Davenport and Paolo Coppi

Published by Oxford University Press (January 2021)

ISBN 978-0-19-879869-9

Price £44.99

https://global.oup.com/academic/product/paediatric-surgery-9780198798699?cc=gb&lang=en&

This is the first time I have looked at a book in this series (Oxford Specialist Handbooks In Surgery) and I was very impressed. This is different from the well known and highly regarded Oxford Medical Handbook series (https://global.oup.com/academic/content/series/o/oxford-medical-handbooks-oxhmed/?lang=en&cc=gb) and have their own characteristics see https://global.oup.com/academic/content/series/o/oxford-specialist-handbooks-in-surgery-oshsurg/?lang=en&cc=gb As the title suggests, these are specialist handbooks and in this particular handbook, the core audience are relevant surgical trainees, established specialists and specialist nursing staff -and in this particular book all in the subject of paediatric surgery. From a personal perspective, after reviewing this book, I would add primary care to this list.

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Edited by Majid Maleki, Azin Alizadehasl and Majid Haghjoo

ISBN 9780323809153

Published by Elsevier February 2021

Price (VitalSource eBook) £73.99

https://www.uk.elsevierhealth.com/practical-cardiology-9780323809153.html

This book which has a strong Iranian contribution is very well written, in clear, concise English and highly relevant to a global audience. The editors and contributing authors have done a superb job of creating an excellent and accessible general cardiology book that is a pleasure to read.

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Laurence Brunton, Randa Hilal-Dandan and Bjorn Knollman

13th Edition

Print ISBN 978 12595 84732

eBook ISBN: 978 12595 84749

Published by McGraw Hill

Price £186.99 for the book

https://www.mheducation.co.uk/goodman-and-gilman-s-the-pharmacological-basis-of-therapeutics-13th-edition-9781259584732-emea 

A good working knowledge of clinical pharmacology is a hugely important part of any prescribing activity for any healthcare professional who has the rights of a prescriber. There are some good resources out there and this is one of the heavy weight contributors. I use the word resources because although books are important, there is an increasing contribution from digital resources and hence the interest in this excellent eBook. Having access to an electronic text like this either on a computer, via an app on a smartphone or a tablet can be a significant support to a prescriber.

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Edited by Robert Tasker and Carlo Acerini

Published by Oxford University Press (January 2021)

ISBN 978-0-19-878988-8

Price £36.99

https://global.oup.com/academic/product/oxford-handbook-of-paediatrics-3e-9780198789888?cc=gb&lang=en&

This is yet another winner from this outstanding series of the Oxford Medical Handbooks and I am sure this new edition will go on to become an outstanding success, like many of the books in this series. For those that are not familiar with this superb series, these are more than just handbooks, they are encased in a tough viny cover and in the case of this particular book, it is chunky in its thickness. It runs to an impressive 1015 pages and yet remains portable and accessible.

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Edited by J. Larry Jameson, Anthony Fauci, Dennis Kasper, Stephen Hauser, Dan Longo and Joseph Loscalzo

20th edition published 2018

ISBN for ebook 9781259644047

Published by McGraw Hill

https://www.mheducation.co.uk/harrison-s-principles-of-internal-medicine-twentieth-edition-vol-1-vol-2-9781259644030-emea   Price £169

This book is without doubt in the premier league of general medical textbooks and has been around for a long time and it has definitely matured with age. Interestingly, one of the editors Anthony Fauci has achieved international stardom due to his high profile and being advisor to Presidents and currently is the chief medical advisor to the current US President and has his own large Wikipedia entry page, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthony_Fauci

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Pathophysiology, diagnosis and management

11^th Edition

Editors  Mark Feldman, Lawrence Friedman, Lawrence Brandt, Raymond Chung, David Rubin and C. Mel Wilcox

Published by Elsevier

Price £174.59

https://www.uk.elsevierhealth.com/sleisenger-and-fordtrans-gastrointestinal-and-liver-disease-2-volume-set-9780323609623.html

I reviewed the eBook (Inkling eBook) version of this mighty publication without reverting to the standard physical textbook. According to the publisher’s website, the printed edition of this book runs to 2488 pages spread over 2 volumes. So, I would guess this represents a fairly large product, taking up a lot of library space. For some people that is ideal, they like the physical feel of a book and you don’t need an Internet connection to use it, whereas other people prefer to embrace the digital version.

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Genealogy and Family Tree software

http://www.family-historian.co.uk/

Price £59.95 from https://store.family-historian.co.uk/ as a download

(check system requirements  https://www.family-historian.co.uk/support/system-requirements )

Manufacturer: Calico Pie

Interest in genealogy has been spiralling upwards for many years now and often it is a rewarding, fun and an educational pastime. With the advent of lockdown due to covid-19, more people have been stuck at home looking for something to do and some have turned to genealogy. Computer software is all but essential for storing, cataloguing, and indexing the vast amounts of data you are likely to collect in the multiple family trees, you may assemble.

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Edited by Philip Gorelick, Fernando Testai, Graeme Hankey and Joanna Wardlaw

Published by CRC Press

Published December 2020

Price e book £112.50

https://www.routledge.com/Hankeys-Clinical-Neurology/Gorelick-Testai-Hankey-Wardlaw/p/book/9780367280321

I had the pleasure of reviewing the eBook on its own without resorting to any paper edition which in this pandemic world is becoming a more mainstream activity. Of course, the advantages of a digital book are obvious, it is likely to be more environmentally friendly, more available through a digital device via an app which can be found on a smartphone or tablet and can be more searchable. Of course, there is the value of the handling and feeling of a paper book and this now boils down to personal choice. However, a critical advantage of an eBook is portability on either a desktop computer or mobile device. Having this kind of information on the front line can be crucial.

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5^th Edition

Jonathan Wyatt, Robert Taylor, Kerstin de Wit, Emily Hotton

Published by Oxford University Press (June 2020)

ISBN 978-0-19-878419-7

Price £36.99

https://global.oup.com/academic/product/oxford-handbook-of-emergency-medicine-9780198784197?cc=gb&lang=en&

Hopefully many readers will be conversant with the excellent Oxford Medical Handbooks series which many of us have both started and continued our medical or healthcare professional careers using these excellent and supportive handbooks. This outstanding and refreshed (with a new edition) member of this series, is a great addition to help a healthcare professional deal with a problem arising from emergency medicine.

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6^th edition Published 2020

By Catherine Nelson-Piercy

Published by CRC Press

ISBN  978-0-367-34612-6

Price £66.99 (Paperback)

https://www.routledge.com/Handbook-of-Obstetric-Medicine/Nelson-Piercy/p/book/9780367346126

Women who are pregnant or who want to be pregnant may present to a substantial number of diverse specialties and sometimes their medical state can cause specific clinical problems.

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ISBN 978-0-323-71333-7

Edited by Fred Ferri

Published by Elsevier (August 2020)

Price £74.99

https://www.uk.elsevierhealth.com/ferris-clinical-advisor-2021-9780323713337.html

I have used this book before and I am delighted to see that it continues to improve, it is updated due to being published annually. I would imagine that as soon as the book is finished for a new edition, the contributors start on the next edition, so the effort to produce such a book must be immense. The end product is certainly very impressive.

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Third Edition

Edited by Hilary Humphreys, William Irving, Bridget Atkins, and Andrew Woodhouse

Oxford Case Histories

ISBN 978-0-19-884648-2

Published by Oxford University Press, April 2020

Price £39.99

https://global.oup.com/academic/product/oxford-case-histories-in-infectious-diseases-and-microbiology-9780198846482

November 29^th, 2020

The Oxford Case Histories in Infectious Diseases and Microbiology provides an up to date method of discussing infectious diseases as case-based discussions.

Currently in the UK, doctors in training are required to maintain portfolios and, in most cases, case-based discussions are a requisite.

It is exactly the strength of this book, which covers the impressive number of 47 cases, all presented and discussed by Professors, Consultants and clinical lecturers, thus guaranteeing high quality questions and answers.

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Eleventh Edition

Edited by Andrew Baldwin

ISBN 978-0-19-882719-1

Published by Oxford University Press, September 2020

Price £32.99

https://global.oup.com/academic/product/oxford-handbook-of-clinical-specialties-9780198827191?cc=gb&lang=en&

The Oxford Handbook of Clinical Specialties has been the companion of many medical students, GP registrars and GPs as well as junior doctors over the years. Now four years later, I welcome the latest 11^th edition.

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Edited by Gary Firestein, Ralph Budd, Sherine Gabriel, Gary Koretzky, Iain McInnes and James O’Dell

11^th edition 2 volume set published July 2020

ISBN 978-0-323-63920-0

Published by Elsevier (June 2020)

Price £352.79

https://www.uk.elsevierhealth.com/firestein-kelleys-textbook-of-rheumatology-2-volume-set-9780323639200.html

In the modern Internet era, you would think that the blockbuster, large, almost encyclopaedic printed textbook (even more than the one volume, like this work) of any medical discipline is now a historical footnote in the digital age. I disagree and this superb 2 volume substantial and all-encompassing printed textbook of rheumatology (and it comes bundled with a digital version-more later) is testament that the large medical printed textbook certainly has a role to play in modern medical education. I would call this 2-volume substantial work, an outstanding scholarly contribution to learning more about rheumatology.

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A color guide to diagnosis and therapy

7^th Edition

James Dinulos

ISBN 978-0-323-61269-2

Published by Elsevier (April 2020)

Price £141.99

https://www.uk.elsevierhealth.com/habifs-clinical-dermatology-9780323612692.html

I have used this book before and was very impressed with it, so I looked forward with great interest to review it this new edition. However, I was very saddened to read in the foreword that Dr Thomas Habif, the original author had sadly passed away. Fortunately, a colleague has taken over the authorship of this book and this book continues on as an updated version. I am delighted to see that this new edition (7^th) has maintained the remarkably high standards set by the current author’s illustrious predecessor.

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Edited By Jason Payne-James and Richard Jones

ISBN 9781498704298

Published by CRC Press (January 2020)

eBook £31.46

https://www.routledge.com/Simpsons-Forensic-Medicine-14th-Edition/Payne-James-Jones/p/book/9781498704298

This was an interesting review because I used the eBook and not the physical book at all which of course has advantages and disadvantages. However, in this modern post lockdown era, we should be getting used to digital products and in fact this book was a pleasure to use. You may think that Forensic Medicine is a remote branch of medicine which has little or no interest to most doctors. If that is the case have a scroll through this eBook and there is lot here to interest a healthcare professional in a wide range of clinical disciplines. In particular, this book’s subject matter looks at specific areas of medicine that a healthcare professional may have little experience or exposure in their everyday activities.

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10^th edition

Editors Adam Feather, David Randall and Mona Waterhouse

Published by Elsevier (June 2020)

Price £58.99

https://www.uk.elsevierhealth.com/kumar-and-clarks-clinical-medicine-9780702078682.html

I suspect many medics will be familiar with previous editions of this book (as I am), as this book already has a particularly good reputation in the medical community. However, all good medical textbook books after a few years need refreshed and updated. The good news is that this new edition retains its freshness and relevance to the practice of modern medicine.

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5^th Edition

Chantal Simon, Hazel Everitt, Francoise van Dorp, Nazia Hussain, Emma Nash and Danielle Peet

Published by Oxford University Press (June 2020)

ISBN 978-0-19-880818-3

Price £36.99

https://global.oup.com/academic/product/oxford-handbook-of-general-practice-9780198808183

This book arrived as the Covid-19 lockdown started to ease (impressively Covid-19 even gets a small mention on page 299) and it was a pleasure to review. As a practicing GP, I like having good up to date books that can help me (and in turn help my patients) and this book without doubt easily fits the role. This book is superb and maintain the high standards that we have come to expect from the excellent Oxford Medical Handbook series. This particular book is now in its 5^th edition and being published in Summer 2020, it should help to support primary care staff for the next few years.

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A systematic approach

Ninth Edition

John Salmon

ISBN 978-0-7020-7711-1

Published by Elsevier (December 2019)

Price £164.99

https://www.uk.elsevierhealth.com/kanskis-clinical-ophthalmology-9780702077111.html

This book has a rich heritage and sadly the person most associated with the evolution of this book, Jack Kanski passed away relatively recently see https://www.aop.org.uk/ot/in-practice/practitioner-stories/2019/01/10/textbook-author-dr-jack-j-kanski-remembered-by-co-author-as-an-incredible-mentor However this new volume remains a testament to Jack Kanski and his work, whilst remaining fresh and updated. This is a superb textbook and sets the standard for other medical textbooks who should take note of what this book has achieved.

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Edited by Rebecca McKnight, Jonathan Price and John Geddes

Published by Oxford University Press

5^th Edition

ISBN 978-0-19-875400-8

Published May 2019

Price £34.99

https://global.oup.com/academic/product/psychiatry-9780198754008

There is nothing to beat a good solid undergraduate medical textbook and for us here in the UK even better, this is a British based book. The three lead authors are either practising in Oxford or in some way associated with Oxford University and the book is published by Oxford University Press. The book is good enough to be of use to both medical undergraduates as well as junior doctors and GPs wanting a refresher on the topic. Equally healthcare professionals with an interest in mental health will also find this a very good resource. I think a lot of people will find this useful and educational.

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