Customer Reviews

The American Medical Association Family Medical Guide (AMA Family Medical Guide)

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

When a child's temperature zooms at midnight, this is the book you want. Our family has relied on it, time after time, and through every imaginable crisis. I agree with the comment below that the flow charts and graphic arrangement make this an especially user-friendly book: zip-zip-zip through the chart, and you'll have either an accurate diagnosis, or a sense of comfort about what illness you're NOT dealing with. Very authoritative and thorough, but extremely easy to use, as well.

This is the most clear and informative family medical book I've ever seen! (my parents have a Merck Manual and the Mayo Clinic Fam.and they are absolutely useless in comparison)

The FLOW CHARTS and BETTER information in a logical format are what set this guide apart and make for intelligent deduction/self-diagnosis and possible solutions.

The American Medical Association Family Medical Guide walks you thru your symptoms via these wonderful FLOW CHARTS suggesting possible causes and on what page to find further info.

This book will enable you.

I turn to this book whenever I have any question about symptoms, medications, anatomy, or medical concerns. It has, more than once, put my mind at ease. The book is easy to understand, written in a question/answer format, with lots of flow charts, illustrations, and photographs. This book should be in every home!

This book is excellent for reading about health issues
in layman's terms. Many of our customers have gotten
important information from this source. The charts and
diagrams are very useful. I hope they publish an
update soon!

I received this book for a wedding present 9 years ago and thought "what a silly gift". I was so wrong! This has been such a HUGE source of information for myself and entire family. I was able to diagnose my little brother with a life threating illness before anyone else...including the emergency staff in the hospital. Every house should have this book!

Okay, I'm not a hypochondriac, sorry. My mother purchased an earlier edition of this book, published in 1982. I had that edition until I recently ordered this one to replace it.

I should preface the rest of my review by saying that I have a definite interest in medicine, and planned to become a paramedic. I did take my EMT-B certification (Emergency Medical Techinician-Basic) a few years ago, and this book was one of my resources for studying for tests and answering homework questions. So, I have a clear INTEREST in all things medical, and really enjoy just browsing through this book.

I find that I look things up in this book at least once a week. Sometimes I'll hear the name of a disease or illness on TV and out of curiousity to know more, I'll look it up. If I have a strange symptom, I'll look that up. I am single with no children, but this book would be an invaluable first-aid resource for a family with children or for anyone taking care of a sick or elderly friend or family member.

My favorite aspects of this book are the glossary of medical terms, the very complete and easy-to-use index, and the medication section. Several times I have looked up a medication to determine if it is safe to take with other medications, or to see if side effects are normal.

I think every household should have a copy of this book. Most of the information is timeless and very informative.

My 25 year old will soon have a baby. I will be giving her this book. It helped my throughout her childhood. She still calls me to check symptoms and do a "mom" diagnosis.

I'm a 19 year old college student. When I was two years old my grandparents gave my parents a copy of the AMA Family Medical Guide. With two children and another on the way, they could easily see that this book would be used time and time again. I have early childhood memories of flipping through the pages of this book and looking at the pictures. I have later memories of flipping through the pages and reading about different conditions and diseases and general anatomy. And now, even though I dont have any children of my own, I still go back to this book to reference symptoms and facts that I hear about in day-to-day conversation. Symptom flow charts are excellent.
Highly recommended!

Everyone should have a medical reference book at home (especially if you have kids), and this is a good one.

There are several things that I like about the book. First, there is a "self-diagnosis" chart section in the front. If you have a bad headache, stiff neck, sick stomach, etc, you can go through the flowchart and get an idea of what might be wrong. This is not to replace a doctor's diagnosis, but it really helps me determine if I'm being overly-concerned or if I should see a doctor. I definitely use that section of the book.

There are also sections of the different systems of the body that include descriptions of diseases. A little while back I was having problems with my digestive system. It really helped to read the section on colitis and Crohn's disease to understand more about them so that when my doctor discussed them, I could better understand him.

There are also sections on First Aide, caregiving at home, selecting physicians, and even a section on terminal illness and death. Though those last few items are things we don't really want to think about, there is information about how to handle making arrangements and whatever else needs to be done.

There is also a drug dictionary in the back which can come in handy, plus a medical glossary.

Overall, I'm glad that I added this book to my library. It has an abundance of useful information about illness and medicine. I do have another medical reference guide as well, but it's not nearly this comprehensive. I think everyone should have a book like this on their shelves.

Although no one should forego getting a doctor's opinion, this book is absolutely the best layman's guide to self-diagnosis. I have used it to accuratley diagnose problems within my own family may times and even before I've had to see the doctor. No library should be without this one.