The Shoulder. 3rd ed.

The Shoulder. 3rd ed. Charles A. Rockwood Jr., Frederick A. Matsen III, Michael A. Wirth, and Steven B. Lippitt, editors. Philadelphia: Saunders; 2004. 1417 pages. $275.00.

The formation of this large, two-volume text was coordinated by four knowledgeable and insightful editors who, in a very well-organized manner, have displayed the work of more than sixty contributors. The editors' intention was for the book to be an all-inclusive text, and they have largely succeeded. In addition to supplying a tremendous amount of information, the book contains extensive scientific referencing, which makes it a useful resource for further in-depth study of any topic of interest with regard to the shoulder. The production quality is excellent, with extensive use of line drawings to accurately display structural details and concepts.

The initial three chapters on anatomy and related topics are almost a subtext in and of themselves. They are so well done and so informative that they alone are worth the purchase of the book or the retrieval of the book from a library for specific study of these chapters. A related chapter on biomechanics complements these chapters nicely. A concentrated review of these chapters will make one a better shoulder surgeon-guaranteed.

In the book The Shoulder and Neck, published in 1972, James Ennis Bateman endeavored to organize the current-day thinking about patterns of clinical presentation of patients with shoulder difficulties. The result proved to be a useful way for clinicians to shape their thoughts about their patients. In the chapter on clinical assessment, the Rockwood text offers some new insight and details into this patterning of clinical presentation that clinicians will find refreshing and useful in practice. Imaging has always been an interest...