Harcourt Health Sciences, Philadelphia, 1999, $93
As with the other books in The Requisites series, Thoracic Radiology distills the core concepts of chest imaging into a manageable length. For the radiology resident with limited funds and time, this book is the most efficient tool for mastering chest radiology.
The 541 pages are divided into 19 chapters with 822 illustrations. Dr. Theresa McLoud authored more than half the sections, while her colleagues from Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston provided the rest. The images, and the chest radiographs in particular, are excellently reproduced. The gray summary boxes, which readers of the requisite series know well, are abundant.
The authors cover in great detail such diverse topics as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, congenital thoracic abnormalities, thoracic trauma, pulmonary neoplasms, the trachea, and interventional techniques.
A chapter dedicated to pulmonary infections in the immunocompromised (AIDS and non-AIDS) host is quite useful. The treatment of chronic diffuse infiltrative lung disease is outstanding. This potentially daunting subject is demystified with a logical pattern- oriented approach.
The author exhibits similar grace in her treatment of the pneumoconioses. Equally instructive are Dr. Phillip Boiselle’s chapters on normal mediastinal anatomy and focal mediastinal masses.
One of the shortcomings of Thoracic Radiology is the summary boxes, which could be used to better advantage with more frequent attention to the differential diagnosis of select radiographic findings. A disease such as sarcoid -- notable for its protean manifestations -- warrants images that reflect these various appearances. More CT images, particularly in the chapters on infection and trauma, would be helpful.
While most significant lung pathology is addressed, major categories of chest pathology are excluded because they are considered the domain of cardiac radiology. For instance, in the case of anomalous pulmonary venous drainage, the reader is referred to a chapter heading in Cardiac Radiology: The Requisites by Stephen Miller. Areas such as thoracic aortic disease, pericardial disease, and the manifestations of valvular heart disease are also covered in substantially greater depth in Cardiac Radiology (Harcourt Health Sciences, Philadelphia, 1996, $89).
To maximize the benefits of Thoracic Radiology, the companion Case Review book should also be purchased. This paperback has 150 cases of varying difficulty. The authors provide references to pertinent chapters in the main text, as well as to articles in the recent literature.
By Dr. Eric SmithAuntMinnie.com contributing writer
Dr. Smith is a third-year resident at the University of California, San Diego. He will undertake a musculoskeletal MRI fellowship in 2002 at North American Orthopedic Imaging Associates in San Francisco.
If you are interested in reviewing a book, let us know at [email protected].
The opinions expressed in this review are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of AuntMinnie.com.
Copyright © 2001 AuntMinnie.com
