Abstract
This book is written by two well known and highly respected veterinary dermatologists practising in the UK and North America. It is intended to be for student and clinician consumption and will be particularly attractive to students who like to picture match with the cases presented to them in clinic. An important feature of the book is the arrangement of the material with the so-called problem-orientated approach which is increasingly popular in student teaching and CPD presentations. Consequently there are chapters on the dermatological lesions, pruritis, nodules, ulcerative dermatoses, papular and pustular dermatoses, sinus formation, crusting and scaling, pigmentary abnormalities, environmental and endocrine dermatoses, otitis externa, disorders of the nail and dermatoses characterised by patchy alopecia.
There are 225 illustrations and they are all in colour and the vast majority are of excellent quality; some of the cytology samples could be a little clearer. The range of diseases presented is impressive—reflecting the experience of the authors.
There are copious notes with each disease covering the definition, aetiology and pathogenesis, clinical features, differential diagnoses, diagnostic tests and management. Some of the drugs mentioned are either not available, such as cythioate for flea infestation, or should not be recommended, such as ketoconazole for dermatophytosis in the cat.
It is inevitable that in a book of only 240 pages only the commonly recognised diseases are presented and that as ever there is more material on the dog than the cat. One major drawback is the arrangement of the reference section which is at the back of the book and would be better arranged after each chapter or section to improve access.
The book is very well produced and should survive frequent handling. The text and illustrations cover a significant amount of material and are potentially very useful for students and practitioners dealing with canine and feline dermatological problems.