Dermatology - An Illustrated Colour Text

In the course of surgery discussions with patients about their rashes, I tend to like to show them a picture of the rash if at all possible. This indicates that you have made a certain diagnosis and you know what you’re talking about, which is often half the battle in the management of the problem.

This book has some of the best illustrations I have seen. Not only is the colour balance first rate but you can almost feel the rashes too. The other day, I was looking for a decent picture of Pityriasis Rosea for a somewhat disbelieving young man who got a bit shifty when I suggested that his rash might take six weeks to clear. Somebody had misappropriated my copy of Clinical Dermatology (Hunter, Savin and Dahl) so we had to go through the "are you sure?" and "how do you know?" malarkey. If I’d had this book then, I could have flipped it open triumphantly at page 38 and my credibility would have been boosted instantly.

Another useful thing about this book is the ease with which it is possible to dip into the text and read a single chapter quickly, for example most of the nail problems that a GP is likely to see are covered in a not-at-all daunting two pages. New trends in treatment are mentioned towards the end of the book with some products due for imminent release. The Internet is a rich source of information for the dermatologically inclined and numerous useful websites are listed together with a short discussion on the practice of Teledermatology.

This book is one of a series that I also hope to have the pleasure of reviewing. Good value with plenty to interest the GP, I would say one thing to my partners - get your own!!

Publisher:	Harcourt Publishers Ltd
	ISBN: 0-443-07140-3

Price:	£21.99

Reviewer:	Dr Jeremy M Sager