Robbins - Cotran Pathologic Basis of Disease Description:

Robbins & Cotran Pathologic Basis of Disease review:
5 stars (Robbins & Cotran Pathologic Basis of Disease Review) - This book is very well formated. It goes indepth to help the reader comprehend and retain the thorough information presented in a logical, organized manner. An added bonus is the CD that comes with this text that is also presented well and helps the reader see, by photos, exactly what has been covered. Having access to the on-line version enables the owner of this book to view the information from anywhere. I highly recommend this book.


3 stars (Good reference book, not a teaching one.) - This review is for the previous two editions.

Robbins Pathologic Basis of Disease is widely used in medical school as an introduction to the field of pathology. The book is well referenced and very detailed, and there lies some of its weakness. As a reference book it does not get any better, however the writing style rambles around an issue and leaves you with a feeling that you just do not know what you read.

Pathology, for being a science, is fairly weak. The description of a disease is sometimes based on multiple facts which we do not understand as a whole. For example headaches are decribed in multiple categories, but the tratment for all of them is in most cases unknown. What works for one person does not work for another. Robbins gives you all the details, but in many cases fails to teach you the scientific pathophysiology of a disease. For example, instead of giving you a concise picture of each disease (ie asthma) it tells you about the HLA associations, and many other random details that have no bearing in patient treatment.

Again, as a reference book is excellent. For learning the hard real meat of each disease, stick to Harrison's Internal Medicine and your basic science books.
5 stars (THE path book for ppl who don't mess around!) - If your pathology lecture handouts look like this:

"toxoplasma - immunocompromised host - cardiac transplant"

and you are thinking, "What causes what? Can professors use verbs?"

then this may be the book for you.



I found myself in the situation of requiring more explanation, and R&C PBD fits the bill.



Pros:

- Thorough (at over 1500 pages, it better be!).

- Readable - I noticed that people disagreed on this point. No, it is not "fun" to read, but I think it is as good as you can get. The text does not assume that you have mastered the previous chapters, it provides explanation throughout, making it possible to open it anywhere and still understand what is going on.

- Summary tables, nice photos, clear diagrams - could maybe use more of them.



Cons:

- It's enormous! of course, that's a problem with the subject, not the book. I guess you have to ask yourself if you can set aside the time and concentration to get through it, if not, purchase BRS pathology. (Tip: if the weight of a 1500-pg. book bothers you, get the binding removed at a copy shop and carry the currently relevant pages)

- No study questions - I recommend its Review of Pathology companion with 1100+ questions for ample board review.



Good luck, you hardcore path master!