Ruth Brown, University of Liverpool

This book is AMAZING! Its very easy to read, gives clear explanations with brilliant diagrams and concise text and helps you learn what is clinically relevant and rather important to know for when you start work. Having read the small "made easy" books and the lecture notes on radiology I found this to be a far superior text; whether just dipping in and out of it to read about something you saw in clinic, or to read from cover to cover, this book is interesting and about all you would need to know for finals (and to not look stupid on a ward round), another plus is the online feature so you can look things up between patients if your near a computer in hospital, all in all a bargain

Posted 1st Jul 2009

Aniek de Coninck, Maastricht University

This is a great new book, richly illustrated and ideal for medical students in their 3rd and 4th years especially in Emergency Medicine, Surgery and Internal Medicine -- who will be called on to interpret everyday examinations. It stresses the important fundamentals in a bulleted, easy-to-read format that is less onerous than some other fundamental texts but substantial enough to allow one to make the diagnoses that non-radiologists are called on to make. In addition, the on-line material available for access with this text has dozens of really great interactive, image-based quizzes that are keyed to the book. I would highly recommend this book to all students who need to learn the fundamentals of radiology.

Posted 11th Nov 2008

David Miller, University of Glasgow

Unfortunately I have found radiology one of those subjects that isn’t really taught as such but might be thrown into lectures with a relevant investigation and yet on the wards we are expected to be pretty knowledgeable on reading xrays, CT’s and MRI’s. I have been a little sceptical of radiology books as all they seem to be is a collection of pretty looking xrays with pathology and a brief this is X without any explanation. There seems an absence of normal to help orientate you and give you a baseline against which to compare pathology. As the key to learning is understanding rather than pattern recognition, I don’t find this all that useful. Anyway this is the first radiology text I have seen that really goes through the subject in a user friendly manner, logically talking you through imaging of certain conditions ie fractures, pneumonias, tumours or certain body regions ie abdominal CT, head CT, plain film lung. I personally like bullet points and this approach is taken throughout the book which is nice and succinct- no screeds of mind numbing and daunting text. The text is well separated into titles etc I found this book unique also in that it is aimed at all students and junior doctors. It is not designed for potential radiologist but as a comprehensive text providing the level of radiological knowledge all doctors must have. A cool bit in this book is that it puts the important stuff in bold and then the uber important stuff has its own little symbol. AT the end of the chapter is a simple little table with “take home points”- this is not like a chapter summary but as the name suggests things to learn and apply. Also of note are little boxes explaining some of the radiology jargon as applies to the chapter you are studying. Perhaps the most useful application of the book is to refer to it as an when you see something. So say you see a central venous line being put in on the wards. They take a mobile CXR and the consultant ask you if you can see how the line is incorrectly sitting in the subclavian artery. You sheepishly nod in agreement when actually you have no clue what is going on. When you get home simply read chapter on critical care radiology recognising correct lines and tubes placement. It answers all the questions you were afraid to ask. Don’t forget the handy little interactive quizzes free on Student Consult access with the book. There are a whole set of normal imaging anatomy which are not to be missed. A very fairly priced handy addition to the bookshelf for clinical years.

Posted 22nd Aug 2008