British Journal of Radiology (2003) 76, 580
© 2003 British Institute of Radiology
doi:
Radiology review manual (5th edn). By W Dahnert, pp. xix+1202, 2003 (Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Philadelphia, PA), $99.00 ISBN 0-7817-4822-4
D W Pilling
This is the 5th Edition of this now well recognised book. Its origins back in the late 1980s are a single author's experience of radiology and it is intended as a reference book for trainees and those in general radiology practice when faced with an unusual diagnostic problem. The book is divided into sections by systems with the exception that nuclear medicine occupies an entirely separate section. The author accepts that this means that specialties such as paediatric radiology are not well catered for but is justified in that it avoids repetition.
Each section commences with a list of differential diagnoses relating to that system and is then followed by lists of differential diagnoses for particular radiological appearances. Many of these are accompanied by mnemonics some of which are very strained and interestingly in the preface the author accepts that these are not to his liking but are in response to comments from those using previous editions.
As a result of this some of the lists of causes of appearances are anything but logical and this criticism could also be applied to several other lists without mnemonics. The author admits that the evidence base for some his lists is less than ideal but this is inevitable in book compiled from multiple sources over many years. As a bench book this succeeds in giving all radiologists a starting point when analysing difficult cases and at the price is extremely good value for money.
