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Practical procedures in aesthetic plastic surgery. Tips and traps
Book Reviews
117
point of irrelevance to all except medical students; that on skin grafts was turgid, inadequately illustrated, and useless compared with the multitude of better descriptions published over the past century. What can possess an author to regurgitate pages of text such as this, other than a desire to see one’s name in print and produce texts within the discipline of ENT surgery about subjects which any student could easily study in other books? As with so many such volumes, there are sections which demeaningly trivialise areas of practice which the author cannot possibly understand. The reconstruction of burns of the head and neck is dismissed in less than one page. Growth factors are reviewed in 6 sides; again I cannot imagine who will benefit from reading this particular chapter, which is more adequately covered at every level in better books. Thieme volumes are presented in a pleasing uniform style, and are usually good value for money. Despite being relatively cheap, I cannot recommend this volume to trainees or busy clinicians, who would benefit more from the time spent reading review articles in journals or basic science in books with more clearly defined boundaries. T. E. E. GOODACRE
Notes on our Reviewer T. E. E. Goodacre, FRCSEd, FRCS, The Radcliffe Infirmary, Woodstock
Practical Procedures Traps. By Tolbert York, 1994. ISBN DM 258.
Consultant Plastic Surgeon, Road, Oxford OX2 6HE.
in Aesthetic Plastic Surgery. Tips and S. Wilkinson. Springer-Verlag, New 3-540-94082-O. Pp viii+487. Price
It would be wonderful, would it not, to have as a kindly uncle, a vastly experienced plastic surgeon who had seen it all and done it all.
You would be able to sit down beside him in a huge leather armchair of an evening in front of a roaring fire, with photographs of his prowess on the polo field on the wall. Havana cigar in one hand and accepting a large Remy Martin in the other, you would attentively listen as he told you how it really was.. “Fat injections, m’boy, rubbish! But the concept changed my practice and here’s how to do it: create a space for the fat and treat it like a graft. Whether or not the fat survives for long doesn’t matter, it cures the problem. Some of my most grateful patients, what! ” And so on into the night, plenty of name dropping of course, he is on first name terms with anybody who is anybody in Cosmetic Plastic Surgery and quite a few who are not. Maybe it is the brandy that makes him repeat himself a bit, but the anecdotes are entertaining. This book by Tolbert S. Wilkinson is a rather pale substitute for such a relative. The avuncular style is the same, the anecdotes are all there and names are dropped like confetti, although there is not one complete reference in the entire book. But it would be a mistake to regard this as a scientific study of cosmetic surgery. It does not pretend to be any more than a discussion of the subject from the author’s point of view, peppered with photographs which totally fail to illuminate the text. How can a discussion on a blepharoplasty be illustrated by a photograph of a patient who has had her eyes obscured by black rectangles in order, presumably, to avoid recognition? So light the fire, find a comfortable chair and sit down for a lighthearted read. But you will have to provide your own brandy and cigar. M. H. C. WEBSTER
Notes on our Reviewer M. H. C. Webster,
MB,
ChB,
FRCS,
Consultant
Plastic
Canniesbum Hospital, Bearsden, Glasgow G61 1QL.
Surgeon,
117
point of irrelevance to all except medical students; that on skin grafts was turgid, inadequately illustrated, and useless compared with the multitude of better descriptions published over the past century. What can possess an author to regurgitate pages of text such as this, other than a desire to see one’s name in print and produce texts within the discipline of ENT surgery about subjects which any student could easily study in other books? As with so many such volumes, there are sections which demeaningly trivialise areas of practice which the author cannot possibly understand. The reconstruction of burns of the head and neck is dismissed in less than one page. Growth factors are reviewed in 6 sides; again I cannot imagine who will benefit from reading this particular chapter, which is more adequately covered at every level in better books. Thieme volumes are presented in a pleasing uniform style, and are usually good value for money. Despite being relatively cheap, I cannot recommend this volume to trainees or busy clinicians, who would benefit more from the time spent reading review articles in journals or basic science in books with more clearly defined boundaries. T. E. E. GOODACRE
Notes on our Reviewer T. E. E. Goodacre, FRCSEd, FRCS, The Radcliffe Infirmary, Woodstock
Practical Procedures Traps. By Tolbert York, 1994. ISBN DM 258.
Consultant Plastic Surgeon, Road, Oxford OX2 6HE.
in Aesthetic Plastic Surgery. Tips and S. Wilkinson. Springer-Verlag, New 3-540-94082-O. Pp viii+487. Price
It would be wonderful, would it not, to have as a kindly uncle, a vastly experienced plastic surgeon who had seen it all and done it all.
You would be able to sit down beside him in a huge leather armchair of an evening in front of a roaring fire, with photographs of his prowess on the polo field on the wall. Havana cigar in one hand and accepting a large Remy Martin in the other, you would attentively listen as he told you how it really was.. “Fat injections, m’boy, rubbish! But the concept changed my practice and here’s how to do it: create a space for the fat and treat it like a graft. Whether or not the fat survives for long doesn’t matter, it cures the problem. Some of my most grateful patients, what! ” And so on into the night, plenty of name dropping of course, he is on first name terms with anybody who is anybody in Cosmetic Plastic Surgery and quite a few who are not. Maybe it is the brandy that makes him repeat himself a bit, but the anecdotes are entertaining. This book by Tolbert S. Wilkinson is a rather pale substitute for such a relative. The avuncular style is the same, the anecdotes are all there and names are dropped like confetti, although there is not one complete reference in the entire book. But it would be a mistake to regard this as a scientific study of cosmetic surgery. It does not pretend to be any more than a discussion of the subject from the author’s point of view, peppered with photographs which totally fail to illuminate the text. How can a discussion on a blepharoplasty be illustrated by a photograph of a patient who has had her eyes obscured by black rectangles in order, presumably, to avoid recognition? So light the fire, find a comfortable chair and sit down for a lighthearted read. But you will have to provide your own brandy and cigar. M. H. C. WEBSTER
Notes on our Reviewer M. H. C. Webster,
MB,
ChB,
FRCS,
Consultant
Plastic
Canniesbum Hospital, Bearsden, Glasgow G61 1QL.
Surgeon,