If you would like to submit a book to the Annals for review, please
send two copies to: Publications Department, The Royal College of
Book Reviews
The Angiosome Concept and
Tissue Transfer
G IAN TAYLOR, WEI-REN PAN
EXTENT P/H 1,220 p, hardback
PRICE/ISBN £423.00 9781576261613
PUBLISHER CRC Press (Boca Raton), 2013
REVIEWER Patrick Addison
STAR RATING ****
This two-volume set may look a little daunting and dry;
indeed, parts of it will hold less interest to some readers.
However, it is a well written and exacting presentation of
the career-long studies of the lead author and his col-
leagues, concerning the vascular territories and anatomy
of the human body. It reflects countless hours spent in the
dissecting room, and a vast and critical understanding of
the concepts underlying tissue transfer.
The prose displays the clarity and consistency that is
often lacking in other texts with multiple authors. No detail
is spared from head to toe and the knowledge to be
gleaned will be beneficial to all reconstructive surgeons.
The clear colour illustrations and presentation are typical
of other books by this publisher.
Volume 1, Chapter 1 begins with a short history of our
knowledge of vascular anatomy, leading to the story of the
first vascularised free tissue transfer carried out in Australia
in 1977. There follows a comprehensive and chronological
review of the authors’ experience (part clinical, part
research) describing how many and varied reconstructive
problems were overcome, culminating in the widely revered
whole body studies of the human vasculature and the pre-
sentation of the angiosome concept.
Chapter 2 presents the anatomical and embryological stud-
ies underpinning the angiosome concept, and offers a compa-
rative anatomy section where a critical appraisal is made of the
similarities and differences between the vascularity of humans
and research animals. While this chapter might not suit the
casual reader, it is highly informative and enlightening.
Chapter 3 introduces the fundamental concepts behind the
clinical application of the anatomical knowledge. This will be
of great value and interest to all reconstructive surgeons
wishing to broaden their horizons and improve their surgical
outcomes. This section leads on naturally into Volume 2, a
detailed, region-by-region description of human vasculature
and clinical applications.
This book is not merely a historical description of the
foundation of current practice; it is the basis for many
future developments and advances.
Surgeons of England, 35–43 Lincoln’s Inn Fields, London WC2A
3PE. Book reviews are published at the discretion of the editor.
doi 10.1308/003588414X13814021680193
Aesthetic and Reconstructive
Breast Surgery: Solving
Complications and Avoiding
Unfavorable Results
SETH THALLER, ZUBIN J PANTHAKI
EXTENT P/H 206 p, hardback
PRICE/ISBN £175.00 9781841848471
PUBLISHER Informa (London), 2012
REVIEWER Ashu Gandhi
STAR RATING **
This book contains 18 chapters and is illustrated through-
out with colour photographs. The 2 editors and almost all
of the 36 contributors are plastic surgeons in the US. Only
one of the contributors is from outside the US.
As indicated in its title and the preface, the ambition is to
provide surgeons with guidance on how to solve complica-
tions in breast reconstructive and aesthetic surgery, and to
avoid unfavourable results in outcome. With this in mind, I
eagerly anticipated reading the book and learning new points.
Unfortunately, the book does not quite live up to its
promise. Chapter 2 presents a good general discussion of
Poland syndrome and tuberous breasts. Conversely, the
treatment for these conditions lacks any detail to help the
surgeon in treating patients. This lack of detail seems to be
a running theme through the various chapters.
The chapters on breast asymmetry and mastopexy pro-
vide a good general sweep of the techniques used but any
descriptions of surgical technique are sparse and disap-
pointing. Chapter 6 has a very good section on preopera-
tive evaluation of patients being considered for reduction
mammoplasty. However, there is no real mention of how
to solve complications or avoid unfavourable results. The
section on oncoplastic surgery of the breast makes no
mention of the Grisotti flap or how to deal with positive
surgical excision margins after performing oncoplastic sur-
gery for breast cancer. Curiously, there is discussion of
acellular dermal matrix reconstruction in the chapter on
lumpectomy and radiotherapy.
Chapter 10 deals with tissue expander reconstruction
and, again, while it lacks any detailed description of the
surgical technique of tissue expansion, there is a very good
discussion of the complications of such reconstructions and
how to avoid any potential problems. Chapters 11 to 13
present a good overview of pedicled and free flaps but the
level of discussion is more for a general surgical trainee or
breast surgeon than a plastic surgeon with aspirations to
perform such operations.
Ann R Coll Surg Engl 2014; 96: 563 563