The 52 chapters written by 77 authors in this 1000-page volume constitute a serious, in-depth study of essentially every aspect of surgical diseases of the stomach, duodenum, and small intestine. Coverage of gross microscopic and subcellular anatomy, physiology, and pathology have almost as much space coverage as does the operative management. This makes the book valuable as a reference for both gastroenterologists and surgeons.
The editors, being the immediate past and current chairmen of surgery at Vanderbilt Medical School, Nashville, Tenn, use their credentials and contacts wisely in choosing international experts as chapter authors in both basic science and clinical fields. They wisely give such high-strung thoroughbreds a loose editorial rein, simply keeping them within the page allocation fitting to the subject.
Both conventional and new diagnostic techniques are carefully covered. The 38-page chapter on contrast radiology by Lappas and Cockerill, although not as glamorous or novel as those on