Customer Reviews

Guyton and Hall Textbook of Medical Physiology: with STUDENT CONSULT Online Access, 12e (Guyton Physiology)

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I thought it might be helpful to people if I excerpted the following from Prof. John Hall's preface to the 12th edition because it deals in part with what revisions he made for the book:

"I worked closely with Dr. Guyton for almost 30 years and had the privilege of writing parts of the 9th and 10th editions. After Dr. Guyton's tragic death in an automobile accident in 2003, I assumed responsibility for completing the 11th edition.

For the 12th edition of the Textbook of Medical Physiology, I have the same goal as for previous editions - to explain, in language easily understood by students, how the different cells, tissues, and organs of the human body work together to maintain life.[...]

A brief explanation is needed about several features of the 12th edition. Although many of the chapters have been revised to include new principles of physiology, the text length has been closely monitored to limit the book size so that it can be used effectively in physiology courses for medical students and health care professionals. Many of the figures have also been redrawn and are in full color. New references have been chosen primarily for their presentation of physiological principles, for the quality of their own references, and for their easy accessibility. The selected bibliography at the end of the chapters lists papers mainly from recently published scientific journals that can be freely accessed from the PubMed internet site at [...]. Use of these references, as well as cross-references from them, can give the student almost complete coverage of the entire field of physiology. The effort to be as concise as possible has, unfortunately, necessitated a more simplified and dogmatic presentation of many physiologic principles than I normally would have desired. However, the bibliography can be used to learn more about the controversies and unanswered questions that remain in understanding the complex functions of the human body in health and disease.

Another feature is that the print is set in two sizes. The material in large print constitutes the fundamental physiologic information that students will require in virtually all of their medical activities and studies.

The material in small print is of several different kinds: first, anatomic, chemical, and other information that is needed for immediate discussion but that most students will learn in more detail in other courses; second, physiologic information of special importance to certain fields of clinical medicine; and, third, information that will be of particular value to those students who may wish to study particular physiologic mechanisms more deeply."

Well, I read the last edition of Guyton and it was fair to midland in quality however the 12th edition is another story. For physiology and molecular biology the illustration need to grip the idea and leave a lasting mark. If the prose can do the same you have a marvelous textbook. Well both ideas and practices have been fulfilled with this edition. The chapters on cell structure are brilliant as well as renal and cardiac anatomy and physiology. This text left me reading 100 pages a night until I was complete with the text. The hasn't happened to me since the last edition of the The Cell. The fundamentals of each of the bodyies organs are so well explained and illustrated that alot of new information came my way. I have to say this text is the best medical text I have read in the last three years. You will find it an amazing and time well spent read. Enjoy.

This is one of my favorite physiology texts, and provides the reader with comprehensive knowledge regarding nearly every conceivable physiology topic. The systems-based organization makes finding topics within this hefty text relatively easy; furthermore, the chapters are well-organized and concise, each covering very specific aspects of the topic at hand. As a consequence Guyton and Hall's text makes an excellent supplement to other, less-impressive physiology texts (and there are plenty). I highly recommend this book as an addition to any serious biology/pre-med/med. student's library.

I went through each and every chapter side by side and they're exactly the same content with better presentation.

Other than that, you may save your money for another book that you may need.

Recently I had the opportunity to compare some (not all) of the cardiology chapters in Guyton versus Boron, head to head (I had both books open, side by side). There were a few things in Boron that were better illustrated and better explained. But overall I thought that Guyton was superior in its relevancy to clinical medicine.

I can't speak for any other topics in these books, only cardiology. For cardiology, in my opinion the clear winner was Guyton.

I am not a Doctor, however my friend is and he willed this book to me after he passed away. He said it was his "go to" book in Med School. I was given the ninth edition and it has helped me to get alot of good comments fom my Clinical Instructors on my Patho Window's. The cellular level information that is required by the Instructors on these Patho Window's does not seem to be available in the books they sell us prior to Nursing School. Now I know why my friend who started out as a Nurse then became a Doctor told me I would need this book. It has been a tremendous help and has been getting me all A's in clinical, so far. When I get a job I will be buying the newer edition.

This book is great. It gives you all the information and explanation needed about the subjects and is very comprehensive. I'm a first year med. student and I love it. I must admit, it takes a while to read them, but by the time you're done reading a chapter, you will get a great understanding of the concepts.

As far as I have been able to inspect this new edition, the changes introduced are mainly about the interface rather than the content. The paper and print quality feels much softer to the eye and chapter-text layouts have been optimized.

At least half of the references on almost every chapter appear to be after 2006 (the year in which the 11th edition was published), which happened to be the element I primarily checked before buying. I expected the chapter contents to change accordingly, which I didn't observe as I compared with the 11th edition.

I got this book out of personal fascination and have joyously cut through it. It is rich with fascinating topics. The knowledge in this book is not at all relevant to my career field, but I find that an understanding of the different systems gives me an even greater appreciation for Science and our universe. I would gladly recommend this text for teachers and personal scholars alike.

I am med student and this text book was recommended by my university. I really enjoy having it around! I am a first year student, so at times it goes into more detail than what I need, but I am sure this will last me a few years to come. Happy with the buy.