Twenty-two years have elapsed since the publication of the first edition of
Surgery of the Knee, the editor of which was Dr. John N. Insall. The
fourth edition, edited by Dr. W. Norman Scott, has kept pace with the
tremendous increase of information on the topic of disorders of the knee. The
textbook is authored by many true leaders in their field; thus, it is
authoritative and comprehensive.
Dr. Scott has implemented many changes with this fourth edition. The online
web site includes the entire text, and the interactive DVD-ROM now contains
portions of the text, supplemented with multimedia. The image bank is new and
exciting as it contains educational videos and high-quality images that can be
readily incorporated into electronic presentations. I particularly enjoyed the
classic section of the video library, which details the "Exposures,
Approaches and Soft Tissue Balancing in Knee Arthroplasty." The videos
by Dr. Insall and his colleagues are true classics. The interviews and
surgical demonstrations by Dr. Insall are certainly worth the price of the
textbook. The classic section is complemented by other surgical demonstrations
(minimal incision in total knee arthroplasty, and the subvastus approach in
total knee arthroplasty).
The reader also benefits by other important changes in the text. The most
obvious difference is the new section on imaging as well as the addition of
seventeen chapters, for a total of 112. The chapters on imaging complement
those on anatomy and provide the reader with information about the countless
imaging studies available for the diagnosis of knee problems. Arthroplasty
surgeons will be interested in the chapter entitled, "Imaging of the
Painful Total Knee Arthroplasty." The section on biomechanics has been
expanded from four to seven chapters, with an emphasis on soft-tissue and
implant considerations, alternative bearings for knee articulation, and
retrieval of knee implants. Another striking difference in the fourth edition
is the number of colored illustrations and photographs. The authors have done
a fantastic job of utilizing the illustrations and photographs to make key
points, such as the technical details of surgical procedures. This is
especially evident in Section XI, which includes ten chapters on
unicompartmental, minimally invasive total knee arthroplasty,
computer-assisted surgery, and navigation in knee replacement. All of the
authors should be commended for maintaining key and time-tested information
while also adding new information to the chapters of this edition. A
color-coded system with tabs in the upper right corner of the page identifies
the twelve sections of the textbook, thus allowing easy identification of
these sections.
I believe the fourth edition will be useful to the reader in many ways. The
comprehensive chapters and thorough bibliographies are an excellent resource.
The outline and content of the text will also provide a format or syllabus for
resident education which may be incorporated into a one or two-year
curriculum. Also, residents, fellows, and practicing orthopaedic surgeons will
find the video presentations immediately relevant and beneficial to their
work. Finally, the online "e-dition" and its monthly updates will
result in a living textbook.
The book has very few drawbacks and suffers primarily because the reader
wants more of what it contains. For example, the classics and video sections
are only directly related to a few chapters of the text. Navigating through
the DVD-ROM is also slightly clumsy. The DVD-ROM offers a useful search engine
to locate text on topics of interest; however, it is difficult to correlate
the various multimedia resources to the same topic.
In summary, I believe this textbook will clearly find its place as the
authoritative text on disorders of the knee. If Dr. John N. Insall were alive
today, I am sure he would give his full approval and compliments to his friend
and colleague, Dr. W. Norman Scott, as well as to all the other individuals
who were involved with this outstanding contribution.