Customer Reviews

Essentials of Orthopedic Surgery

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I originally got this book because of my interest in orthopaedics and because a senior classmate recommended it for its simplicity. In that respect, I agree with him in that it is rather simple in its approach. In the end, however, even though this book is well written, I really didn't like it. For starters, I wanted to read a book that would give me useful knowledge for orthopaedic rotations that I was about to take, but this book failed miserably. The first several chapters rehash basic science stuff about osteoclasts and osteoblasts, and though it is useful knowledge, it is not very clinically relevant. While the basic science chapters in the beginning didn't have much clinical relevance, I had high hopes for later chapters. Unfortunately, I was only let down. Clinical chapters were so simplistic and vague that it really didn't help me manage a patient or answer relevant questions on my rotation. Rather, the information was generic and would have been covered by just doing a rotation and watching what was happening. For example, while reading about joint replacements, the book goes on to explain porous and cemented joints. While this info is good, the book doesn't give enough information to allow one to make a good decision on which joint would be better, rather, it seeks to just tell you that the two joint classes exist. I picked up on this information in less than one week of just doing a rotation, and I really didn't need to spend time reading this book to figure that out. This kind of information is rather abundant throughout the book. Also, don't expect this book to teach a physical exam, or you are going to be disappointed. If you are looking for a broad overview of orthopaedics, then this book is well suited for your tastes, but if you want to impress an attending on an orthopaedic rotation, best look elsewhere.

This is a great book for a 3rd or 4th year orthopedic rotation. Written at a basic level that is easy to understand and follow