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Fundamentals of aesthetic plastic surgery
120 burns is outstanding. The photographs are well-chosen, comprehensive and well-reproduced, but the line drawings look rather amateurish by comparison. The bibliography is extensive and up-to-date. The publishers have produced a high quality book at a relatively low price by German standards. This book is an excellent state of the art review, refreshingly lacking in Teutonic dogma. Although it is a fine tribute to Professor Buck-Gramcko, it does not fill an existing gap and is therefore unlikely to be translated from its present German form into an English version. A. D. MCGREGOR
Surgical Anatomy of the Head and Neck. By. J. KrmpoticNemanic, W. Draf and J. Helms. Pp. ix+331 with 233 illustrations. (Berlin, Heidelberg, New York, London, Paris, Tokyo: Springer-Verlag, 1988). Price DM375. ISBN 3 540 17414 1. Books on the surgical anatomy of the head and neck are no doubt difficult to write and illustrate. This one succeeds in the task very well and would be a valuable aid for those aspiring to surgical careers involving the head and neck region. Having said that, the book is basically an atlas with accompanying short descriptions and does not go into the tine details of topographical anatomy, so further anatomical reading is necessary for that. Anatomical variations of relevance to the surgeon are well covered and there are pertinent surgical comments at the end of each description of an area. Originally written in German in 1985, this 1988 edition is in English. The contents are divided into twelve sections covering different areas in the head and neck. Each of these is then set out with illustrations on the right-hand pages and written descriptions on the opposite left-hand pages. A few of the sections would not be relevant to most plastic surgeons, for example those on the intracranial anatomy and the larynx. The quality of illustrations is consistently good: many are in colour. The book ends with an 1l-page bibliography which is referred to in the text, and is adequately indexed with both a surgical and a subject index. Plastic and reconstructive surgeons are not mentioned in the list for whom this book is intended (ENT, neurosurgery and maxillofacial surgery clinicians) but I am sure those of us who work in the head and neck. and particularly those in training, would find it helpful and a pleasant, easy book to read and use. The conditional ‘would’ is used purposely, the condition required being a fat bank balance-unfortunately the price is prohibitive to trainees, and many libraries in Britain would think twice about it. M. D. POOLE
Atlas de Chirurgfe Esthktique Plastique. By Guy Jest, Franqois Legent and Robin Moucargie. Pp. vi + 262 with 88 figures. (Paris, Milan, Barcelona, Mexico: Masson, 1988). Price FF 726. ISBN 2 225 81169 5. This is a book of contrast. It is aimed at trainee plastic surgeons to give some instruction in basic aesthetic techniques. The operations chosen in each category are those favoured by the author and no discussion or bibliography is included. The text is
BRITISH JOURNAL
OF PLASTIC SURGERY
in both French and English, side by side. and accompanied by numerous black and white photographs and line drawings. The general quality of printing and of the illustrations is poor. The French-to-English translation unfortunately leaves much to be desired, a fault which could easily have been remedied by an English-speaking sub-editor before publication. Many words are translated inappropriately directly from French to English, for instance the French word intervention (meaning operation) appears frequently in the English text and complications prtcoces (early complications) is translated as premature complications. Many of these errors are of course easy to interpret but some may be misleading for a non-French speaker. It is unfortunate that the publishers have not taken greater care since there are many useful descriptive passages in the book. It is divided into 10 chapters covering general techniques, rhinoplasty, otoplasty, blepharoplasty, face lifting with associated procedures, mammoplasty and abdominoplasties. Techniques in rhinoplasty are covered particularly well, there being a comprehensive description of the submucosal approach and many photographs of difficult problems in rhinoplasty together with suggested solutions. The chapter on face lifting includes a helpful description of the SMAS lift and its anatomical basis. In summary, this could be a very useful little book to a trainee, read in conjunction with other standard texts in aesthetic surgery, but I can see it having little appeal in its current form. B. M. JONES
Fundamentals of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery. Edited
by Stephen A. Sohn. Pp. xiv +447, illustrated. (Baltimore, London, Los Angeles, Sydney: Williams and Wilkins Co., 1987). Price &98. ISBN 0 683 07844 5. Stephen A. Sohn is Clinical Instructor in Surgery at Harvard
Medical School and has edited this book as a teaching aid, aimed “to help the beginning Plastic Surgeon secure a comfort zone for aesthetic plastic surgery”, “as a basic primer equivalent to McGregor’s Fundamentals ofPlastic Surgery”. It is a qualified success. There are some useful chapters on outpatient surgery (“free standing ambulatory surgical facility”) and anaesthesia (omitting a mention of the toxic effects and management of overdose of local anaesthetic). Anyone bemoaning the lot of the National Health Service surgeon would do well to read his American Hospital colleague’s problems before taking the V.Q.E. There isan interestingchapter on psychology, which would have been more useful had the author been aware of David Harris’s work, and an admirable one on clinical photography which highlights the rest of the book’s problem in failing to show even vaguely comparable before and after pictures. The reproductions, although badly printed and almost invariably on a different page from the relevant text, do show that more success can be achieved by altered lighting, position and exposure than by any scalpel. Line draw&s & many, unclear, inadequately labelled and some with captions missing or transposed. Illustrations of bizarre surgical instruments are
included. Curiously, in a “basic primer” of 440 pages, 22 are devoted to “Craniofacial Surgery” (subtitled “Aesthetic Aspects of Orthognathic Surgery”). No osteotomy higher than the Le Fort I level is described. Twenty-six pages are devoted to “Aesthetic Considerations for Paediatric Surgery”, which more curiously covers burns in
121
BOOK REVIEWS two pages and clefts in nine (of which half are covered in photographs of a quality low even by this book’s standards). Similar skimpy separate sections on “Haemangiomas”, “Vascular Naevi” and “Congenital Naevi” are included. A less successful chapter entitled “Aesthetic Considerations in Skin Cancer Excisions” attempts in I1 pages to treat facial neoplasia. Half of this space is covered in glaringly mislabelled illustrations. However, the least successful chapters are those devoted to descriptions of operative technique, which are often confusing. repetitious or conflicting and also devoid of principles. It is clear that the 29 authors have neither collaborated nor had their contributions edited, resulting m a bewildering variety of style ranging from the curt to the verbose. One chapter entitled “Skin Care and Make-up” reads like the script for a lecture which might come over well on the stage but on the page it looks flippant. There is an incomplete index and no references, although most chapters are followed by lists of “suggested readings”. In stark ContmSt with its McGregor model, this book appears to have been hastily compiled without the care, principles and clarity so necessary in this field. It would be surprising if it runs to McGregor‘s seven editions. Not recommended. J. LENDRUM
Notes on our Reviewers David M. Evans, FRCS, Consultant Plastic Surgeon, Wexham Park Hospital, Slough, Berkshire. John Lendrum, MA, FRCS, Consultant Plastic Surgeon, Withington Hospital, West Didsbury, Manchester. Barry M. Jones, FRCS, Consultant Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeon, The Hospitals for Sick Children, Great Ormond Street, London. Alan D. McGregor, FRCSG, Senior Registrar in Plastic Surgery. Charing Cross Hospital, Fulham Palace Road. London. Michael D. Poole, FRACS, FRCS, Consultant in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, The Radcliffe Intirmary, Oxford. Philip J. Sykes, MA, FRCS, Consultant Plastic Surgeon. St Lawrence Hospital, Chepstow, Gwent
Editor’s note In the January 1988 issue (British Journul o/‘P/usiic Surger,v, 41. 101) Mr John Lendrum offered a bottle of champagne to the author of the best answer to a question, posed in a book he was reviewing. Mr Lendrum is a man of his word and the bottle has been dispatched to Mr Denis Bodenham whose response was as follows: 3”.
Surgical Anatomy of the Head and Neck. By. J. KrmpoticNemanic, W. Draf and J. Helms. Pp. ix+331 with 233 illustrations. (Berlin, Heidelberg, New York, London, Paris, Tokyo: Springer-Verlag, 1988). Price DM375. ISBN 3 540 17414 1. Books on the surgical anatomy of the head and neck are no doubt difficult to write and illustrate. This one succeeds in the task very well and would be a valuable aid for those aspiring to surgical careers involving the head and neck region. Having said that, the book is basically an atlas with accompanying short descriptions and does not go into the tine details of topographical anatomy, so further anatomical reading is necessary for that. Anatomical variations of relevance to the surgeon are well covered and there are pertinent surgical comments at the end of each description of an area. Originally written in German in 1985, this 1988 edition is in English. The contents are divided into twelve sections covering different areas in the head and neck. Each of these is then set out with illustrations on the right-hand pages and written descriptions on the opposite left-hand pages. A few of the sections would not be relevant to most plastic surgeons, for example those on the intracranial anatomy and the larynx. The quality of illustrations is consistently good: many are in colour. The book ends with an 1l-page bibliography which is referred to in the text, and is adequately indexed with both a surgical and a subject index. Plastic and reconstructive surgeons are not mentioned in the list for whom this book is intended (ENT, neurosurgery and maxillofacial surgery clinicians) but I am sure those of us who work in the head and neck. and particularly those in training, would find it helpful and a pleasant, easy book to read and use. The conditional ‘would’ is used purposely, the condition required being a fat bank balance-unfortunately the price is prohibitive to trainees, and many libraries in Britain would think twice about it. M. D. POOLE
Atlas de Chirurgfe Esthktique Plastique. By Guy Jest, Franqois Legent and Robin Moucargie. Pp. vi + 262 with 88 figures. (Paris, Milan, Barcelona, Mexico: Masson, 1988). Price FF 726. ISBN 2 225 81169 5. This is a book of contrast. It is aimed at trainee plastic surgeons to give some instruction in basic aesthetic techniques. The operations chosen in each category are those favoured by the author and no discussion or bibliography is included. The text is
BRITISH JOURNAL
OF PLASTIC SURGERY
in both French and English, side by side. and accompanied by numerous black and white photographs and line drawings. The general quality of printing and of the illustrations is poor. The French-to-English translation unfortunately leaves much to be desired, a fault which could easily have been remedied by an English-speaking sub-editor before publication. Many words are translated inappropriately directly from French to English, for instance the French word intervention (meaning operation) appears frequently in the English text and complications prtcoces (early complications) is translated as premature complications. Many of these errors are of course easy to interpret but some may be misleading for a non-French speaker. It is unfortunate that the publishers have not taken greater care since there are many useful descriptive passages in the book. It is divided into 10 chapters covering general techniques, rhinoplasty, otoplasty, blepharoplasty, face lifting with associated procedures, mammoplasty and abdominoplasties. Techniques in rhinoplasty are covered particularly well, there being a comprehensive description of the submucosal approach and many photographs of difficult problems in rhinoplasty together with suggested solutions. The chapter on face lifting includes a helpful description of the SMAS lift and its anatomical basis. In summary, this could be a very useful little book to a trainee, read in conjunction with other standard texts in aesthetic surgery, but I can see it having little appeal in its current form. B. M. JONES
Fundamentals of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery. Edited
by Stephen A. Sohn. Pp. xiv +447, illustrated. (Baltimore, London, Los Angeles, Sydney: Williams and Wilkins Co., 1987). Price &98. ISBN 0 683 07844 5. Stephen A. Sohn is Clinical Instructor in Surgery at Harvard
Medical School and has edited this book as a teaching aid, aimed “to help the beginning Plastic Surgeon secure a comfort zone for aesthetic plastic surgery”, “as a basic primer equivalent to McGregor’s Fundamentals ofPlastic Surgery”. It is a qualified success. There are some useful chapters on outpatient surgery (“free standing ambulatory surgical facility”) and anaesthesia (omitting a mention of the toxic effects and management of overdose of local anaesthetic). Anyone bemoaning the lot of the National Health Service surgeon would do well to read his American Hospital colleague’s problems before taking the V.Q.E. There isan interestingchapter on psychology, which would have been more useful had the author been aware of David Harris’s work, and an admirable one on clinical photography which highlights the rest of the book’s problem in failing to show even vaguely comparable before and after pictures. The reproductions, although badly printed and almost invariably on a different page from the relevant text, do show that more success can be achieved by altered lighting, position and exposure than by any scalpel. Line draw&s & many, unclear, inadequately labelled and some with captions missing or transposed. Illustrations of bizarre surgical instruments are
included. Curiously, in a “basic primer” of 440 pages, 22 are devoted to “Craniofacial Surgery” (subtitled “Aesthetic Aspects of Orthognathic Surgery”). No osteotomy higher than the Le Fort I level is described. Twenty-six pages are devoted to “Aesthetic Considerations for Paediatric Surgery”, which more curiously covers burns in
121
BOOK REVIEWS two pages and clefts in nine (of which half are covered in photographs of a quality low even by this book’s standards). Similar skimpy separate sections on “Haemangiomas”, “Vascular Naevi” and “Congenital Naevi” are included. A less successful chapter entitled “Aesthetic Considerations in Skin Cancer Excisions” attempts in I1 pages to treat facial neoplasia. Half of this space is covered in glaringly mislabelled illustrations. However, the least successful chapters are those devoted to descriptions of operative technique, which are often confusing. repetitious or conflicting and also devoid of principles. It is clear that the 29 authors have neither collaborated nor had their contributions edited, resulting m a bewildering variety of style ranging from the curt to the verbose. One chapter entitled “Skin Care and Make-up” reads like the script for a lecture which might come over well on the stage but on the page it looks flippant. There is an incomplete index and no references, although most chapters are followed by lists of “suggested readings”. In stark ContmSt with its McGregor model, this book appears to have been hastily compiled without the care, principles and clarity so necessary in this field. It would be surprising if it runs to McGregor‘s seven editions. Not recommended. J. LENDRUM
Notes on our Reviewers David M. Evans, FRCS, Consultant Plastic Surgeon, Wexham Park Hospital, Slough, Berkshire. John Lendrum, MA, FRCS, Consultant Plastic Surgeon, Withington Hospital, West Didsbury, Manchester. Barry M. Jones, FRCS, Consultant Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeon, The Hospitals for Sick Children, Great Ormond Street, London. Alan D. McGregor, FRCSG, Senior Registrar in Plastic Surgery. Charing Cross Hospital, Fulham Palace Road. London. Michael D. Poole, FRACS, FRCS, Consultant in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, The Radcliffe Intirmary, Oxford. Philip J. Sykes, MA, FRCS, Consultant Plastic Surgeon. St Lawrence Hospital, Chepstow, Gwent
Editor’s note In the January 1988 issue (British Journul o/‘P/usiic Surger,v, 41. 101) Mr John Lendrum offered a bottle of champagne to the author of the best answer to a question, posed in a book he was reviewing. Mr Lendrum is a man of his word and the bottle has been dispatched to Mr Denis Bodenham whose response was as follows: 3”.