Reviewer
Dr. David Sendowski
Chief, Ophthalmology Consultation/Special Testing Service
Associate Professor
Southern California College of Optometry

Color Atlas and Synopsis of Clinical Ophthalmology 5-Volume Library (Wills Eye Hospital Series) Christopher Rapuano ed., New York: McGraw-Hill Professional – paperback. 1,613 pp., $275.00/Library, $65.00/Volume.

I found this series to be an easy to use text and an excellent clinical resource. As a faculty member who teaches both optometry students and private practitioners, I am repeatedly asked to recommend a reference text that provides both pictures of an ocular disease condition, as well as a synopsis of how to manage the condition. This series provides both of these requirements.
The library is divided into the following topic areas: cornea, glaucoma, neuro-ophthalmology, oculoplastics and retina. The first thing that will strike the reader is the exquisite photography that is displayed in the series. In each of the volumes, the clarity and detail of the pictures is superb. The text or synopsis for each ocular disease condition is clinically relevant, giving the reader a quick overview of the disease and how to evaluate, treat and manage the disease entity. If the reader requires a more in-depth explanation of a particular ocular disease, he would have to utilize other reference materials.
The volume on cornea covers the areas of conjunctiva and sclera as well as cornea. The majority of the volume is dedicated to cornea and covers developmental anomalies, dystrophies, degenerations, infectious diseases, inflammatory disorders, ocular surface disease and systemic conditions affecting the cornea. Corneal surgery and complications are included at the end of the volume. I believe the reader who is in a refractive co-management setting will find this to be an excellent review and helpful reference resource.
The glaucoma volume was one of the best clinical texts on the disease that I have had the pleasure of reading. The text is broken into four sections: glaucoma diagnosis, glaucoma management, disease syndromes and imaging technologies. I found this volume to provide an excellent clinical review for the individual comfortable with managing glaucoma patients, as well as a very good foundational text for those who are less experienced in managing the disease. The final section on imaging technologies reviews recent and emerging technology for glaucoma diagnosis and management. This section also reviews how to interpret the test results from each instrument.
I believe the volume on retina would be very beneficial to the primary care provider. The format is similar to the other volumes in providing a brief background of the disorder, pathophysiology, clinical signs, diagnostic evaluation, prognosis and management It is divided into ten chapters which include categories such as macular diseases, diabetic retinopathy, retinal degeneration and dystrophies, chorioretinal inflammatory diseases and peripheral retinal disease to name a few. For practitioners or students looking for a good reference in posterior segment disorders, this volume will serve them well. The pictures and clinical synopses will provide the user with an excellent foundation of the posterior segment disease processes. There are several tables at the end of the text which provide a differential diagnosis of common retinal entities which the clinician will find helpful as well.
The volume on Neuro-ophthalmology is broken into thirteen chapters. I found the section on Magnetic Resonance Imaging for the ophthalmologist to be a very good review with excellent pictures of orbital disease and intracranial lesions. Practitioners in a hospital and/or multi-disciplinary setting will find this to be a great reference source. This volume should also be helpful to practitioners with a large pediatric practice. There is a very good chapter on ocular misalignment and other ocular motor disorders. This text provides common neurological ocular disorders that one might encounter in a general practice as well.
Finally, one would imagine that the volume series on oculoplastics would not be utilized much by Optometry. One would be wrong. There are three sections in this volume divided into eyelids, lacrimal apparatus and orbit. I believe that the practitioner might utilize this volume more frequently due to the day to day lid and lacrimal disease entities that one might encounter in practice. The pictures and clinical description of the various anterior segment disorders are very good and provide the user with an excellent reference source.
In summary, I found the Color Atlas & Synopsis of Clinical Ophthalmology (Wills Eye Hospital Series) to be one that would fit nicely into any practice setting. I would advise purchasing the entire set as I believe that all five volumes will be utilized by the practitioner. This small paperback series can be easily stored on a desk top for quick and easy reference.