Tietz Textbook of Clinical Chemistry and Molecular Diagnostics, 6th Edition

By Nader Rifai

ISBN: 978-0-323-35921-4

Pub Date: 2/6/2017

Reviewed by: Valerie L. Ng, PhD MD (Alameda County Medical Center/Highland Hospital)

Description

Wow – what a makeover of this renowned textbook of clinical chemistry and molecular diagnostics. First of all, the print version remains as hefty as ever (10 lbs.) even though it has a “paltry” 1,865 pages compared to the 2,238 pages in the previous 2012 edition. If you’re wondering, like I was, how this edition could have more material but fewer pages, it’s because some of the chapters are available only online. They are represented in the print version as a single-page abstract luring you to go online to see the full text. Same with the references — only certain ones are in the print version, with the full listing online. Still, use good ergonomic practice when lifting or moving or settling in for a good read.

Purpose

The purpose is to fill “the gap between the clinical laboratory and medical management by relating pathophysiology to analytical results in health and disease.” In other words, a comprehensive book on laboratory medicine focused on clinical chemistry and molecular diagnostics. These remain very worthy objectives. The online format adds tremendous value as it is the complete reference (“platform”), of which the print book is only one of its nine components. This endeavor has stunningly met its stated objectives.

Audience

The audience includes anyone interested in laboratory medicine, from trainees to experienced practitioners. It also would be of interest to anyone interested or working in healthcare curious about the relationship of laboratory results and interpretation to clinical disease and treatment. The title meets the needs of its intended audience. The authors are most credible authorities in their subjects.

Features

This edition continues its excellence in clinical chemistry and its foray in the past few editions into molecular diagnostics. These chapters are incredibly dense and fact filled; many might suffice as standalone expert treatises. This edition has taken on entire new fields of laboratory medicine: hematology, coagulation, microbiology, and transfusion medicine. I must admit these new sections don’t match the depth and breadth of the others. But I’m not surprised — there are entire books of this same prodigious size devoted to each of these newly included areas. So I wouldn’t buy this book for these new sections. This edition is the perfect launching pad to transition readers into online reading as the preferred access. In keeping with the grounding humanism of past editions (e.g., the poignant dedication of the fifth edition to Bill Roberts), this edition includes a foreword from the visionary, Norbert Tietz!

Assessment

This edition continues the grand tradition of Tietz with its superb coverage of clinical chemistry and molecular diagnostics. I will be very interested in watching it mature in hematology, coagulation, microbiology, and transfusion medicine over the editions, as this new foray is not yet competitive with currently available subject-specific books.

Doody’s Review Service Weighted Numerical Score: 94 – 4 Stars!