Essentials of General Surgery

Highly illustrated and extensively revised, Dr. Lawrence has gone to great lengths to provide the most current and up-to-date information on general surgery in this long-awaited Third Edition. This text follows the need-to-know information and objectives relating to specific diseases and areas of surgery that the Association of Surgical Educators has deemed essential for all physicians. New to this edition: multiple choice questions afford the reader an opportunity to prepare for the USMLE Step 2...Case Studies are presented in each chapter to help students to better assimilate the material...an Atlas provides detailed images of surgical procedures and disease states.Although this book is intended for a North American readership, it is relevant to a British medical course. The introduction includes particularly useful tips on improving studying and hints for success in a surgical clerkship, or the equivalent of a senior rotation in surgery. The chapters are concisely written with the facts being easily accessible. Some books are either too verbose, whilst others are too brief. This book is, however, well balanced and readable. There are relevant clinical problems and multiple-choice questions, which can be worked through, and detailed answers are given. This is particularly useful for reviewing your knowledge at the end of each chapter and before an examination. Chapters cover preoperative assessment, wound healing, ethics (including consent), nutrition and electrolyte balance and useful for surgical finals and are particularly relevant to one's career as a house officer. Two common complications, infection and bleeding, are well covered with their management in their own chapters. All specialities in general surgery, including trauma and burns, are covered thoroughly. A particularly welcome chapter is about surgical techniques, procedures and skills. Unlike any other surgery textbooks, this book explains how you should scrub correctly for assisting in the operating theatre. This is extremely useful so that one can be prepared before scrubbing for the first time. There is also a summary of most commonly performed procedures and, together with the relevant clinical anatomy, are worth reading before viewing an operation. This would adequately prepare you for searching questions from the consultant. The price at Ĺ29.95 is affordable to most students and although one improvement might be to replace the black and white photographs with colour, it would substantially increase the price and render it unaffordable to many students. Overall this book covers general surgery concisely and excellently and integrates basic sciences with the clinical material superbly. I would highly recommend you buying this book.;--Roger J G Stevens, 4th Year Medical Student, University of Aberdeen. 19/10/00