George E. Ehrlich

The Metabolic Basis Of Inherited Disease.

This book is one of our contemporary medical bibles. It needs no introduction; those who have frequent need of it know it very well, and those who use it less often seek it out on the library shelf when problems arise. The book is truly encyclopedic. Everything relevant discovered during the six-year intervals between publication finds its way into these pages. By todays standards, its 1,778 closely packed small-print pages are a bargain. The mutant gene is both hero and villain in this book. It is reponsible for the biochemical abnormality that results in disease, no matter how rare a given abnormality may be. By the same token, however, it is truly an experiment of nature, shedding light on fundamental metabolic sequences and biologic mechanisms. This volume, more than most, explains the contributions of the laboratory to clinical medicine. Each chapter seems to have been rewritten, so that the exciting

Roentgen Diagnosis of Rheumatoid Arthritis.

Roentgen Diagnosis of Rheumatoid Arthritis keeps the promise implicit in the title. Its 216 illustrations, many of them multiple, present pertinent diagnostic films. Few of these are concerned with late-stage disease, which is all to the good, since by then, diagnosis hardly requires roentgenographic confirmation; roentgenograms taken at such a time are more for the purpose of assessment for reconstructive surgery than diagnosis. Few films representative of other joint afflictions are included; they would imply differential diagnosis, and the authors, on the whole, eschew the comprehensiveness of an atlas. What one finds in these pages, then, is a set of excellently printed roentgenograms, many of them magnification views, representing diagnostic aspects of rheumatoid arthritis. Few original roentgenograms are as easy to study, as well taken, or as easy to comprehend as the views in these pages, augmented by graphs, clinical photographs, and pathological specimens where appropriate. The workman-like text helps

Medicine in America: Historical Essays.

Some very perceptive essays by an eminent historian of science are collected in this little volume. Their previous separate publication spans more than 30 years, and the earlier ones are themselves period pieces (hailing, for example, the theory of focal infection, now again out of vogue). Their point of view will appeal to all physicians, though the professional historian may find the essays too facile. But, because the book can be read with ease and enjoyment, it deserves a place on every physicians bedside table. Santayanas comment that he who does not know history is doomed to repeat it is true also for medicine. Currently, there is much hue and cry about applied research and a call for de-emphasis of basic research. It is humbling to realize that the 19th century felt the same way, and that the improvement in medical education in America only came about when the tide

Clinical Roentgenology of Collagen Diseases.

Charles C Thomas, Publisher, 301-327 E Lawrence Ave, Springfield, Ill 62703, 1966. It would be pleasant to report that this short volume filled the real need for a definitive discussion of roentgenography in connective tissue disorders. Unfortunately, this book falls short of its aim. There are several reasons for this: the author confuses his role and gives clinical and pathologic reviews that add pages and detract from the subject; he leaves out rheumatoid arthritis and its variants; and, he quotes series. This last feature is by far the most annoying. To read that 96 of 207 patients had a certain finding, that in other series 34% of 32 cases and 35% of 54 cases as well as 27% of 15 cases and 9% of 22 cases had this finding ultimately results in inattentiveness and confusion. I therefore wish that Dr. Nice had not reviewed the literature. I would also have

Physical Examination of the Joints.

Examination of the joints is usually the stepchild of physical diagnosis. By the time the heart, lungs, abdomen, organs of special sense, and nervous system are covered, there is little time to teach the techniques and terminology of joint examination. The average physician, it is safe to say, has even less knowledge of the anatomy of the locomotor system. The authors of this small volume have attempted to remedy this obvious lack and humbly disclaim having prepared more than an elementary text for medical students and physicians. Nevertheless, even experienced rheumatologists and orthopedists can—and should—read this book with great profit. Simple expository prose, ample illustrations, and judicious repetition, embellished by clinical experience, have combined to produce a concise and useful manual. The authors have commendably refrained from attempting to produce a textbook of rheumatology. Their aim obviously is to provide the reader with the wherewithal to record accurately a joint

Hallux Valgus, Allied Deformities of the Forefoot and Metatarsalgia.

A rapid perusal of the rheumatologic and orthopedic literature will reveal many articles about various hand problems. Much less has been written about the foot, in particular the forefoot. In this lengthy monograph, Dr. Kelikian, a Chicago orthopedist, attempts to remedy this lack. Being an orthopedist, he naturally spends much time on operative repair of foot problems. But his sections on functional anatomy, clinical features, and related problems, as well as his definition of the somewhat confusing terminology can be read with interest by all physicians, particularly those especially interested in arthritis and other affections of the musculoskeletal system. Not only does the reader obtain a clearer understanding of the all too common problems of the forefoot, but he will be in a better position intelligently to advise the patient. With much justification, Kelikian attacks modern styles of footwear as a major cause, or at least aggravator, of hallux valgus