214 Book Reviews

current views. It is clear and easy to read and should be useful for anyone wishing to learn more
about platelets in general.
G. HUDSON

Sobotta Atlas of Human Anatomy. Edited by J. STAUBESAND, translated and edited by

A. N. Taylor, 11th English edition. (2 vols; pp. 406 + 384; 1276 illustrations;
£72.) Baltimore and Munich: Urban & Schwarzenberg. 1990.
This is a magnificent pair of books that without doubt still ranks among the finest atlases of
anatomy ever produced. Jochen Staubesand and Anna Taylor, with their most skilful editorship,
have indeed ensured that Sabotta's original aim of producing an atlas that serves the needs of both
medical students and practitioners continues to be achieved.
Major modifications have been made to the nomenclature and these will surely be welcomed by
most. The adoption of anglicised versions of terms in the Paris Nomina Anatomica has affected
virtually every illustration and must have involved an immense amount of work. Two examples
of these changes will suffice - the corpus adiposum buccae is now called the buccal fat pad and the
ligamentum cruciatum anterius is now called the anterior cruciate ligament. A great many new
illustrations have been added and the colour of some of the old ones has been enhanced. Particular
attention has been given to extending the number of photographs, taken using modern imaging
techniques. The immaculate paintings of bones and dissections that graced the earlier editions of
Sabotta's atlas now live happily alongside numerous sonograms, computed tomographic scans,
magnetic resonance images, arthrograms, xerograms and conventional radiographs. Among the
new illustrations are some excellent arthrograms of the menisci and anterior cruciate ligament of
the knee joint, indirect laryngoscopies of subjects with an open and closed rima glottidis,
colposcopic photographs of the cervix and sonograms of the common carotid artery. When you
also consider that there are photographs of surface anatomy models, dissections and sectioned
material, tables of muscle attachments, nerve supply and actions, and histological drawings as
well, you begin to realise the tremendous coverage of the book. As in the previous edition, short
explanations are given about modern imaging techniques, mention continues to be made of points
of applied anatomy, and clinical terms are included where appropriate. Thus the clinician will see
reference for example to the pes anserinus, tibioperoneal trunk, femoropopliteal vein and
superficial femoral artery. Furthermore, the reader will be able to equate these with official
anatomical terminology. It is such attention to detail that will help to attract a wide audience. The
layout of the index has been changed and the table of contents elaborated. Both are now more
valuable and easier to use.
I am sad that the etymology section has now been omitted, for an understanding of the origin
of anatomical terms makes the acquisition of new ones both easier and more interesting. But I
cannot argue with the vast majority of changes that have been made - the books are better for
them, and anatomists owe Professors Staubesand and Taylor a considerable debt of gratitude.
MICHAEL BENJAMIN

Surface Anatomy. The Anatomical Basis of Clinical Examination. By JoHN S. P.

LUMLEY. (Pp. xi+ 104; many illustrations; £9.95.) Edinburgh: Churchill
Livingstone. 1990.
There have been numerous books on surface anatomy in recent years and any new publication has
to offer something special in order to succeed. I do not think that Professor Lumley's book does.
There is an introductory chapter that explains certain fundamental anatomical and pathological
terms. It also summarises the methods and instruments of clinical examination.The six chapters
that follow deal with the head, neck, thorax, abdomen and pelvis, upper limb and lower limb.
Most of the illustrations are colour photographs of young males and females. Line drawings are
superimposed on many in order to illustrate the position of bones, muscles, nerves, vessels, lymph
nodes, etc. Although this technique will appeal to some, I think it often obscures the very features
that the author wishes to highlight (e.g. the tendon of biceps femoris in Fig. 7.15). Furthermore,
lack of colour in the line drawings can make it difficult to distinguish between blood vessels, nerves
and tendons. The dorsalis pedis artery, for example, looks like one of the adjacent extensor
tendons in Fig. 7.26. Because the author has relied heavily on his line drawings for labelling, there
is no good illustration of certain points of surface anatomy that the reader is entitled to expect,
e.g. the great saphenous vein and the bicipital aponeurosis.