Customer Reviews

Sapira s Art & Science of Bedside Diagnosis

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I have an enormous personal medical library, and this is hands down the best book I own. It is like making rounds with the most interesting, learned, and studious clinician you have ever met -- though I suspect many of us have never really met anyone of Sapira's polymathic virtuosity. The book is intelligent, clear, scientific, and fun. It doesn't read like a textbook -- it reads like a one-on-one seminar with a wise mentor; one who has "seen it all" and knows how to teach. Read this book, and you will be a far better clinician for having done so. Don't read it for Boards or exams; read it for your edification. I am an experienced neurologist -- and learned several neurological "pearls" from this book.

Don't buy this book if you're looking for a standard textbook of physical examination. For that purpose, I would recommend DeGowin & DeGowin or the various specialty books (I just can't recommend Bates). If you're put off by historical digressions and occasional amusing bits of pedantry, look elsewhere;you're missing the point of this text. On the other hand, if you want to learn to be a doctor (or a better doctor), you absolutely MUST buy this book.

This is easily the best medical book I've ever come across (and I've even edited one). It is not, nor is it intended to be, a standard textbook. Instead, it is an intriguing, challenging, inspiring, and thoroughly enjoyable book that is better suited to the nightstand than the medical library. More important than its impressive compendium of facts is the way in which it reflects the passion, dedication, intellectual curiosity, and, believe it or not, fun, that should characterize medical practice. These qualities seem no longer to be emphasized in medical curricula in the US and are rarely in evidence in modern clinical training programs. If you're not fortunate enough to make rounds daily with a master clinician of "the old school", this book is an able substitute.

I tend to disagree with the first reviewer. Sapira has not included anything that is irrelevant. He has just made an attempt to let us know what all can be achieved by using clinical methods, an art that the young generation is forgetting due to increasing dependency on investigations. I compliment him on his great foresight and hope to read every edition of his great book. In countries like India, Physical examination and clinical methods are still the mainstay of diagnosis and treatment. Contrary to what is written the earlier review, I would urge the author to include more interesting anecdotes that give us an idea about the history of medicine.

Sapira's textbook is an extraordinary achievement, a testimony to the highest scholarship, and will go down in history as one of the most brilliant works in clinical medicine written in the 20th century. I agree with Dr. Richard Spitzer's review below (duplicated 8 times!). This is a masterpiece of masterpieces, written by a professor's professor.

This is without doubt the best medical book I have ever read, seriosly.
The book is a real eyeopener. It tells how to make a wide range of diagnosis at the bedside using only your hands, mind, and a few basic tools.
So you want to know everything about Hoovers sign in emphysema? Or Duroziez's sign in aortic insuffiency? How to tests for bence jones proteins using a microwave oven and a telephophone directory page? This book will tell you.
Every chapter has an extensive list of references. It is full of anecdotes and historical notes, making the book a pleasure to read.
It is a little weak on the clinical examination of the abdomen and the authors advise is not always possible to follow in a modern day clinical setting.
It would be particularly usefull to teachers in medical schools and doctors specializing in internal medicine.
All in all: It is a great, great book

I stumbled accross the first edition by accident. It was pure pleasure to read and learn from.This edition is equally stimulating. It is full of facts but the anecdotes and history associated with the physical signs takes the pain out of trying to remember dry facts. I found it most useful as a fellow when revising and now as a consultant when I have to look up a reference before teaching medical students or residents. I think that the Neurology section is a bit weak and I do think that there should be a bit more surface anatomy. Otherwise it is a worthwhile investment and like any good book make the time to read it and learn from it. It brings the ART back into physical examination.

Sapira's book contains basic as well as advanced physical exam skills. There is even a section on how to approach the patient who may be lying. It's a lot more fun to read then Bates or McGee, as it makes references to classical works of art (eg. measuring the JVP on Michelangelo's David).

The subject matter is more advanced then Bates for a better part of the book, and McGee's Evidence-Based Physical Diagnosis has more evidence-based information (i.e. positive/negative LRs, etc).

Overall, an excellent book about physical exam skills, as well as their origins and history.

Dr. Saporito shows that you can know it all. This is physical diagnosis at its best: a strong emphasis on the fudamentals, auscultation, neurological examination, and patient history.

Excellent charts, dated-looking picture, but the best comprehensive physical diagnosis book around.

It is almost ridiculous how good this book is. I used mosby's during 2nd year phys dx and also during 3rd year clerkships. Mosby's is a good introduction to PhysDx, and will get you past OSCE's and Step 2 CS, but Sapira's blows it out of the water once you have the basic moves down. You will kill on rounds! The introductory chapters have a good discussion about medical statistics/EBM and history taking and how to deal with different patients. The other chapters are broken up by system, and have great bedside "pearls" that your attendings might not know (unless, of course, they have a copy of Sapira's). Broke out the coin test on my pulmonary rotation, and had to prove to the attending that I wasn't just making it up. Showed them the book and they finally believed me

First, let me tell you that this book was not my first choice, well i had not even read/seen it, because in our medical school and alike the bible considered by all Profs. is Hutchisons Clinical Examination, so much so that if you don't have this book in your hands during clinial rounds and even in the tip of the tongue when the Profs (internal or external - for exams) ask you the name of the book you are reading, you are obligated to mention Hutchisons or else you will not only create a bad impression but also in same cases may lead to failing the test (because the Profs. would have assumed your knowledge to be incompetent).

Now my first encounter.
I came into contact with this book when one of my friends just got it by mail and asked me to just check it out which eventually ended in my desk till the final year and i finally bought it from him (thought he liked it, he thought the amount of data in the book was too much for him, so he did not want it).

Let me first tell you that this book is not for everyone, like you would have now guessed. WHY??? BECAUSE, this book is more of explanatory method to clinal science rather than most people have seen books on this subject where the datas are mostly point to point with minimal or no explanations, and yes this explanations are usually not required for students to pass the test and yes most doctors who are practicing including the old professors (most but not all) have a more robotic approach to clinical examination. And let's face it most people in medical profession are good at memorising stuffs and hence most of them prefer the robotic approach.
Explanation!!!! What do i mean by that ?
When i mention explanation i don't mean the usual explanations of clinial science as are in all clinical science books like reasons for JVP, cyanosis etc... because these are also included in Shapira's book plus the much furthur explanations on these same themes helping you open your mind to the possibilities by giving experimental based evidences and evidence (because the are usually more than 1 example). Not only this, there are also very interesting trivias about clinial sciences and examinations like measuring BP, which helps in stimulating your interest in the subject. There are also very interesting michelangelo sculptures and distorted ones by the author for undertstanding the clinical signs, yes! they are not demonstrated in real humans except in some cases like skin lesions, But! then it's Michelangelo, what better form can you get for demonstration.
Personally i did not read every chapter, as i kept this book as a bible for medicine (mostly). Meaning, I read thoroughtly the chapters on little bit of introduction like history taking and gaining confidence, than more importantly - chest, CVS, circulatory system, both venous and artery; and abdominal examination which was incorporated with Bailey's clinal exam 8/9 th edition (not the new ones) because the latter is the best in surgical cases. Not only that the chapters on skin examination, nervous and muscular examinations are very good, however i can't say much about genital examintion.
So, if you are buying this book, reading chapters from chest, cvs and circulation is a must(this book has information on these chapters that no other book i have read has).
Those who are or will be interested are reading those chapters will also love the chapters on statistical point of view on clinical science helping you out in using logic and some maths on summarising and integrating the information you would have gained after examining the patient. The statistics mentioned here is not to put off some readers because it's not some big formulae or calculations, not even for variance or standard deviation.

Finally though i have mentioned some negative points in the books, i have given 5 stars because firstly i have not read or seen any book with such explanations and stimulus provided to the reader, and secondly i have the belief that no single book should suffice for clinical science like in my case i read about abdomen and neck examinations including lesions like ulcers, lumps, sinuses and fistula from Bailey's 8/9 the editon (even this book recommends, by indirectly mentioning that the information was taken from Bailey's book); but this books is the best for understanding the knowledge and practice of clinical medicine.

So for those, who have interest and want to attain an intellectual state of mind and not for academic, THIS IS THE BOOK FOR THEM.