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䡲 BOOK REVIEWS
Book Reviews
REVIEWS AND COMMENTARY
Chest Radiology: The Essentials, 2nd ed
Jannette Collins and Eric J. Stern
Philadelphia, Pa: Lippincott Williams
& Wilkins, 2007. ISBN 978-0-7817-
6314-1. Hardcover, $100.00; pp 432;
1104 figures.
T
his book is based on Dr Collins’s
award-winning syllabus for a 16-
hour chest radiology course pre-
sented through the University of Wis-
consin radiology residency program.
Both authors have completed the Amer-
ican Journal of Roentgenology Figley
Fellowship in Radiology Journalism and
have considerable teaching and publish-
ing experience. The book explains the
use of current imaging modalities, with
primary emphasis on the interpretation
of radiographs. This edition includes
nearly 800 new images obtained with
state-of-the-art technology, as well as a
new chapter on cardiac imaging. The
authors suggest that the book can be
used for American Board of Radiology
oral examination preparation.
A new “Signs and Patterns of Lung
Disease” section provides a roadmap for
recognizing and understanding findings
on thin-section high-resolution computed
tomographic (CT) images (ie, ground-
glass pattern, mosaic pattern). In ad-
dition, there is an explanation of the
new classification of idiopathic inter-
stitial pneumonias and the new World
Health Organization classification of
lung tumors. There is also information
on current techniques for evaluating
solitary pulmonary nodules, as well as
an algorithm for managing incidental
nodules found at chest CT.
The book is divided into 20 chapters.
The first two illustrate normal anatomy
and signs of disease. Successive chapters
utilize a pattern approach. Each begins
with learning objectives that follow the
2005 revised curriculum on cardiotho-
racic radiology for diagnostic radiology
residency. They focus on specific entities,
38 radiology.rsnajnls.org ▪ Radiology: Volume 251: Number 1—April 2009
such as diseases in the immunocompro-
mised patient, neoplasms of the lung,
and monitoring and support devices
commonly encountered in intensive
care units. The chapters are concise
and sufficiently comprehensive for the
reader to obtain a firm foundation in
the essential aspects of the topic; how-
ever, the depth of discussion has been
limited so that each chapter can be
read in a relatively short time. Each
chapter contains numerous high-
quality radiographic images and uses
CT images to clarify and elucidate ra-
diographic findings. Schematic draw-
ings and tables that summarize impor-
tant aspects of the text facilitate un-
derstanding of basic radiologic signs.
This is a foundation textbook pri-
marily aimed at first-year radiology res-
idents and pulmonary, internal medi-
cine, and family practice physicians
seeking basic knowledge and expertise
in radiologic interpretation. While not
all topics can be covered in depth, it is
regrettable that there is no discussion of
radiographic technique, positioning, or
basic CT physics, especially as they per-
tain to radiation safety. These topics are
included in similar basic chest radiogra-
phy books and should be explored in
any book aimed at new residents. None-
theless, this is an outstanding contribu-
tion to the radiology literature. This is
an improved version of an excellent
book, is well suited for its intended au-
dience, and is priced comparably to
other texts of this genre.
Reviewed by David O. Griffith, MD