Robbins and Cotran Atlas of Pathology » (2nd Edition)

Professor and Academic Administrator, Department of Pathology, Florida State University College of Medicine, Tallahassee, FL

This new full-color pathology atlas is specifically designed to accompany Robbins and Cotran Pathologic Basis of Disease, 7th Edition. More than 1,200 full-color illustrations richly depict all of the major conditions that are most commonly covered in pathology courses and on the USMLEs. Gross and microscopic pathology images are complemented by full-color conceptual line drawings and corresponding radiologic images.

• Focuses on the major conditions most commonly covered in pathology courses and on the USMLEs.
  
• Features an organization that corresponds to the organ system chapters in Robbins and Cotran Pathologic Basis of Disease, 7th Edition.
  
• Takes a consistent approach to explore each condition-beginning with a brief summary of its principal clinical features • laboratory findings • and relevant pathology, followed by high-quality photographs illustrating the normal gross and microscopic appearance of the tissues in that body area as well as the main pathological variants.
  
• Uses full-color conceptual line diagrams to summarize salient pathologic features.
  
• Includes relevant radiologic images depicting diseases' clinical appearance.
  
• Delivers completely different images from those found in Robbins and Cotran Pathologic Basis of Disease, 7th Edition, providing readers with a wealth of additional learning material.
  
• Displays illustrations at a large size, judiciously labeled to identify key features.
  
• Offers an attractive and easy-to-read page format, with numerous summary tables and bulleted lists where appropriate.

ROBBINS AND COTRAN ATLAS OF PATHOLOGY - 1ST EDITION

EDWARD C. KLATT

Reviewed by Dr. Clair Evans SpR, Dept. of Histopathology, Royal Hallamshire Hospital, Sheffield, on behalf of The Royal College of Pathologists - www.rcpath.org, October 2006

This is a new addition to the Pathologic Basis of Disease series of books. With an attractive purple and blue coloured cover and is 529 pages long. The book is divided into 20 chapters that are said to closely follow the second unit of the seventh edition of the 'big Robbins Pathologic Basis of Disease and the Basic Pathology textbooks. One may ask why an atlas is needed to compliment such a comprehensive predominantly undergraduate text. The author states in the preface that 'the majority of students are 'visual' learners and readily take advantage of visual study material' this book therefore is said to provide 'even more examples of disease processes in a visual format'. The aim of the book is also to provide a greater clinicopathological correlation of disease processes by including photographs of patients, radiographs and gross anatomical specimens as well as the histology.

So, is this book needed or helpful and would I buy a copy? This book definitely complements the Pathologic Basis of Disease series. It provides some useful clinical and radiological images which serve as a good aide memoir when looking at the histology and learning about the disease processes. The Pathological Basis of Disease series of books are regarded by most histopathology trainees to be superior to other general pathology texts for undergraduates and junior histopathology trainees. It is not comprehensive enough to replace a purehistology text.

However, with the current paucipathology undergraduate medical curricula currently in fashion, this would be a good atlas to use with any general pathology textbook. I would even recommend to those pathologists who still bravely volunteer to give undergraduate tutorials to take this book along with them. I think that books like this definitely have a place in the problem based learning setting.