5^th edition

Lead Editors. Myron Yanoff and Jay Duker

Published by Elsevier (October 2018)

ISBN 978-0-323-52819-1

Price £257.99

https://www.uk.elsevierhealth.com/ophthalmology-9780323528191.html

Just simply looking at this book generates a “wow” it is a massive yet handsome hardback book that runs to just over 1400 pages. It is a heavy book to lift and in a way is a throwback to the good old-fashioned medical textbook tomes that we used to see. In itself that description is a complement, however this is no old-fashioned textbook. This is a superb modern uptodate textbook of eye disorders that covers its topic in superb detail. This is a proper textbook that is a great resource.

Its look and feel is hugely impressive and is bursting with information. It is beautifully produced and not surprisingly lavishly illustrated. The preface of the book states that it is not meant to be encyclopaedic but it must come fairly close to it. This is a big in-depth book that covers its subject matter in great detail and not surprisingly there are a large number of contributors as well as 12 section editors. Being such a large book, helpfully the 12 main sections are colour coded for ease of navigation.

It is a scholarly production coupled with high production values and large numbers of excellently reproduced and clear images making this book a joy to use. I suspect most ophthalmologists would value a book like this though GPs with a special interest in eye diseases would also appreciate access to this excellent book. However, it is clearly aimed at people who practice clinical ophthalmology on a day to day basis.

I read parts of this book on a random basis and kept to topics which are relevant to my day to day practice. I chose a number of topics and without fail the book had plenty of informative and readable material and although the text is pitched at a specialist audience, I found the book relevant, understandable and educational.

Bundled with the price of the book is the publisher’s digital offering available as both web format and as an app. Like many other books which sport’s the publisher’s digital product, Expert Consult, it is easy to use and simple to navigate. In addition, there is also just under 2.5 hours of associated online video content with an index of the videos at the beginning of the book. The whole electronic product is a valuable addition to the paper book and the combination make a superb bundle.

Not surprisingly the superb book and its electronic bundle is not cheap but I am sure many practicing ophthalmologists would be delighted to own a copy. If you can justify the cost, I am sure you will find this a useful and helpful aid to your clinical practice.

Dr Harry Brown

December 2018