Surgery of the biliary tract has changed markedly in the recent past with developments in therapeutic endoscopy and lately the revolution of minimally invasive general surgery. Professor Toouli has gathered an international group of authors (although none from the UK) to produce a thorough and up to date text that encompasses all the recent developments in practice.
The book opens with chapters on anatomy and physiology, and moves through diagnostic techniques into a discussion of various diagnoses and their treatment. Some chapters, such as that on motility, reffect the editor's research interests rather than clinical value. The chapters on surgical technique are well written and illustrated; they are an invaluable resource for the current surgeon in training who may have little or no exposure to open biliary surgery. The section on benign biliary stricture reminds one that these are largely iatrogenic and increasing in frequency as laparoscopic surgery takes hold. This is a welt written and well illustrated book that would make a useful contribution to any library. It will be valuable reading for those in training and a good source of reference for the expert.