George Collins, University College London

Clinical biochemistry is one of those core topics that spans across all specialties of medicine and also spans through pre-clinical through to clinical medicine, and an understanding of clinical biochemistry is absolutely crucial for the trainee doctor. During my life as a medical student, my learning experiences in lectures, in reading textbooks and on the wards does not compare to this clinical biochemistry textbook. The way it seamlessly links pre-clinical and clinical biochemistry across all specialties comes as a real breath of fresh air to me. What is often portrayed as a complex and difficult topic is made so simple and easy to grasp, with each double page spread covering a single topic. After studying that double page spread the anxiety from years of confusion is lifted and that subject is finally understood. Phew! The reader is taught using easy-to-follow text, as well as fantastically simple images that include flow-charts, diagnostic algorithms, physiological processes, histopathology slides, graphs and chart, molecular structures and pictures of stereotypical patients. Furthermore, on nearly every double page spread is a clinical case, which calls on the reader to apply what they’ve learnt to a real clinical scenario (discussion of the cases are at the end of the book and are really useful). In “Clinical Biochemistry” the topics covered start with the back-to-basics approach to core biochemistry, followed up application of that knowledge in more specific sections about endocrinology and specialised investigations. I honestly couldn’t recommend it enough.

Posted 9th Aug 2011