Maingot's Abdominal Operations, 11th Edition Doody's Expert Review Review Questionnaire ISBN: 9780071441766 ISBN-10: 007144176X Copyright: 2007 Edition: 11th Editors: Zinner, Michael J., Ashley, Stanley W., Doody's Expert Review    Score: 94 Doody's Star Rating™ and Doody's Expert Review provide by Doody Enterprises, Inc. Reviewer: Kimberly Ephgrave,  M.D.  (University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics) Description This is the 11th edition of the classic Maingot's text of abdominal surgery. This edition represents a quantum leap from the seventh edition that was a mainstay of my surgical residency in the early 1980s. The number of chapters has been trimmed to less than 75, and the information fits into one very readable volume. Purpose It is intended to serve as a reference for surgical residents and practicing surgeons on both the how and the why of all abdominal procedures in current general surgical practice. It contains information on technical details far beyond the needs of students or nonsurgical practitioners, but these technical points are essential for surgical practice. Having the pertinent literature justification for surgical decision-making along with clear illustrations of how to perform the procedures are worthy objectives, and the book serves a need that is demonstrated by its use in the surgical community for over 60 years. Audience The book is aimed at general surgeons at all levels. Experienced practitioners may particularly enjoy the chapters that describe new minimally invasive techniques or the history of abdominal surgery, while advanced residents in training will benefit from the text and graphics that clearly describe procedures that they don't frequently see that they may need to perform, such as gastrectomies. Junior general surgery residents could benefit from virtually any chapter in this book. Features All aspects of abdominal surgery are covered, from the proud history of abdominal procedures beginning early in the 19th century in North America and subsequent advances in Germany under Billroth, through the latest minimally invasive techniques being developed in the current millennium. This is accomplished in a single volume work that is, remarkably, simultaneously shorter, well grounded in the literature, and more clearly written than early editions. Most chapters include a solid review of the literature on current controversies as well as clear, useful graphics. It is truly a pleasure to read many of the chapters, including Dr. Schwartz's review of the history of abdominal surgery. It is a multiauthored text, however, and not every chapter is written at the highest level. A few of the chapters contain old clinical photographs or early CT scans that do not have the crisp resolution seen in the majority of the figures, but these infrequent shortcomings are aesthetic rather than substantive. Assessment This new edition is a remarkable step forward for a deservedly beloved text covering all issues pertinent to abdominal surgery. I found both the historical information and cutting-edge technologic descriptions engaging, and would recommend it to any surgical colleague or trainee. Review Questionnaire Range Question Score 1-10 Are the author's objectives met? 10 1-10 Rate the worthiness of those objectives. 10 1-5 Is this written at an appropriate level? 5 1-5 Is there significant duplication? (1=significant, 5=insignificant) 5 1-5 Are there significant omissions? (1=significant, 5=insignificant) 5 1-5 Rate the authority of the authors. 4 1-5 Are there sufficient illustrations? 5 1-5 Rate the pedagogic value of the illustrations. 4 1-5 Rate the print quality of the illustrations. 4 1-5 Are there sufficient references? 5 1-5 Rate the currency of the references. 5 1-5 Rate the pertinence of the references. 5 1-5 Rate the helpfulness of the index. 3 1-5 If important in this specialty, rate the physical appearance of the book 4 1-10 Is this a worthwhile contribution to the field? 10 1-10 If this is a 2nd or later edition, is this new edition needed? 10 ©2010 Doody Enterprises, Inc.