Blood and Guts: A History of Surgery – International Edition, September 23, 2008

Blood and Guts: A History of Surgery Hardcover – International Edition, September 23, 2008

Author: Visit Amazon's Richard Hollingham Page | Language: English | ISBN: 1846075033 | Format: PDF, EPUB

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Blood and Guts: A History of Surgery – International Edition, September 23, 2008
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From Publishers Weekly

Glove up and dive in to what Hollingham describes as a whistle-stop tour of a gruesome and fascinating field. The BBC journalist and author (How to Clone the Perfect Blonde) is a deft storyteller who probably never met a dry fact he couldn't infuse with juicy detail. But there's more here than the drive, energy and bravery of medical pioneers, both doctors and patients, from Galen treating gladiators in the second century B.C.E. to Stuart Carter, the first person to have electrical brain implants to treat Parkinson's disease. Hollingham gives us a tribute not only to saving lives but to making them better. Still, it's the missteps that remind us of the human fallibility of even the greatest doctors. [Robert] Liston's operations were messy, bloody and traumatic, Hollingham writes of Britain's most famous 19th-century surgeon, describing a procedure in which Liston accidentally lopped off an assistant's fingers. The patient died of infection, as did the assistant, and an observer died of shock. It was the only operation in surgical history with a 300 percent mortality rate. What better medical history than one that recounts both successes and failures with honesty and gratitude. 16 pages of b&w photos. (Dec. 8)
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Review

"Blood and Guts is an excellent history of surgery... a highly readable book, full of gripping anedcotes" Irish Mail on Sunday

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Books with free ebook downloads available Blood and Guts: A History of Surgery – International Edition, September 23, 2008

Hardcover: 320 pages
Publisher: BBC Books; hardcover edition (September 23, 2008)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1846075033
ISBN-13: 978-1846075032
Product Dimensions: 1.2 x 6.5 x 9.5 inches
Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,366,229 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

The lurid title of Richard Hollingham's "Blood and Guts" is appropriate, considering its gruesome subject matter. The author traces the history of surgery from ancient times, with the disclaimer that he has not attempted to cover the subject in its entirety. Rather, Hollingham surveys significant events in trauma surgery, cardiac surgery, plastic surgery, transplant surgery, and neurosurgery. He points out that early surgeons, well-meaning though they may have been, probably killed more people than they saved. What chance did hapless patients have without x-rays to show the body's inner workings, anesthesia to reduce pain, and antibiotics and sterile operating rooms to prevent infection? The sick and injured were literally at the mercy of whoever was cutting them. Even if the "victim" miraculously survived, he or she was likely to come out of the operation badly mutilated.

Britain's finest surgeon in 1842 was Robert Liston. Although his operations were "messy, bloody, and traumatic," at least he knew enough to work quickly and under relatively clean conditions. Compared to his peers, he had a low mortality rate--one in six. However, he was arrogant and sometimes careless. During one of his operations, he had a three hundred percent mortality rate--two people died in addition to the patient!

We have come a long way from the days of Liston and especially from the time of the Roman physician, Galen. The latter thought that the heart is a furnace and that the body's humours needed to be rebalanced through vomiting, bloodletting, and purging.

Reviewer's background- I'm a a general surgery resident; I might be harsher than other reviewers, but I hope I can give a review helpful to everyone.

This book is a nice appetizer for anyone interested in the history of surgery. It was written in conjunction with a BBC television series, and it reflects an episodic TV format (for better and for worse).

The good- This is a fun, well written, and fast book to read. The author covers a large swath of surgery: cardiac, transplant, reconstructive and even neurosurgery. Every page has a notable scene / anecdote. Blood and Guts spans centuries, from Galen in Ancient Rome to modern hand transplant surgeons. Despite the pop aspects to Blood and Guts, this is also a smart read. The author trained for 5 years to be a physician, and I think this makes Blood and Guts more intelligent than most journalistic fluff. There aren't the grating errors that make medical professions cringe (unlike most news articles or pop TV). I think the final product belies the amount of research the author put into his work.

What's 'lacking'- Because of the breadth tackled by this book, it doesn't flow seamlessly and lacks a unifying theme. This is fine if you're reading in short bursts (e.g. sitting on the can) but cumbersome if you're reading for long stretches. Also, because of the brevity and quick pace of the book, it doesn't really delve into what the patients or surgeons experienced while encountering such dramatic diseases. Children dying after cardiac surgery, RAF airmen disfigured from battle wounds, terrible surgeons, and great surgeons- it's like you're speed dating them. This book lacks a significant emotional impact for such a potentially powerful subject.

Summary- This is good fast food.