Oesophagogastric Surgery pdf

Many surgeons will already be familiar with the Companion to Specialist Surgical Practice series of books and the publishing of the third edition this year is a welcome revision of this popular and useful resource. The Oesophagogastric Surgery book at last has its correct title (changed from Upper Gastrointestinal Surgery in the previous two editions) and is aimed at surgeons in higher training and practising consultants in keeping with

the overall aim of the series. The editors have added to the existing list of contributors, the majority of whom are established experts in the current management of oesophageal and gastric conditions to provide up-to-date evidence-based information on both benign and malignant disease.

There are three completely new chapters in this third edition that cover the management of early oesophagogastric cancers, gastrointestinal stromal tumours and motility disorders. Comprehensive literature reviews on the first two topics provide an excellent summary of current management including areas of controversy and uncertainty, and highlight these two areas of increasing interest. The difficult and often marginalised subject of motility disorders is approached clearly with very practical suggestions albeit in the shortest chapter of the book; though some of the detail regarding definitive procedures (present in other chapters) is lacking.

The other 15 chapters have been revised and rewritten in varying degrees to ensure their subject matter is as up-to-date and relevant as possible. Some topics, such as the treatment of complications of previous upper GI surgery, have changed little since the second edition was published in 2001 and this chapter has received only cosmetic alterations. In other areas, such as radiotherapy and chemotherapy in treatment of oesophageal and gastric cancer and the surgical management of morbid obesity, there have been important advances that are incorporated into the new text to represent current practice.

All of the chapters are easy to read and address their subject matter comprehensively. In addition, the new style of double-column pages, clearer headings and subheadings, and generally smarter tables is more user-friendly than before. The addition of a ‘Key Points’ summary at the end of each chapter is excellent, and provides a good summary. The Companion series stresses the importance of evidence-based practice and this book uses extensive referencing throughout to support points that are discussed. Important references are highlighted in the main text with a ‘scalpel code’ which is very helpful for those interested in key papers and the long list of references at the end of each chapter will provide a useful resource for those looking for even more reading. Some of the black-and-white photographs have been reproduced in colour in the middle of the book but these are not clearly indexed to the original text and it is a shame that more colour could not have been used throughout.

A new feature for the Companion series is the link to an e-learning website designed for trainees to perform self-assessment. The site is easy to access, free of charge and provides basic and advanced levels of assessment in an intuitive format. At the time of review there were only the oesophagogastric assessments available but these appeared useful and I suspect will see heavy use immediately prior to examinations.

I like the Companion series of books, and this particular book achieves its aims in an excellent fashion. General surgical trainees will find more than they need to know about oesophagogastric surgery here, while oesophagogastric trainees and consultant surgeons can rely on it as a good knowledge base. By bridging the gap between more basic general textbooks and large ‘reference’ texts, this book has a niche and by regular updates it remains relevant. I would recommend it to all who have an interest in the specialty.

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