Lecture Notes on Human Physiology, 3d ed.

The editors have aimed this general physiology textbook at medical, dental, pharmacy, physical education, and physical therapy students. The editors' stated purpose of the book is to provide a textbook that is shorter than standard texts and can be quickly read. They purposely have omitted many references to the experimental literature and devote little space to either clinical or applied physiology. To that end, they have produced a concise, yet complete, textbook on general physiology. In the process, however, they have produced a textbook that would probably most appeal to those looking to quickly access basic information on general physiology.

The textbook covers all the standard information one would expect from a text of this nature. The book begins with cellular physiology and progresses through basic physiologic principles and then proceeds to a discussion of each of the organ systems. The text is replete with excellent illustrations consisting of line drawings. The illustrations are very clear and well labeled. The book also uses sidebars to explain more advanced material. The book contains numerous tables that help summarize the material.

The entire book is formatted in an almost outline fashion. That is, there are numerous bolded headings, subheadings, and key words. Each chapter contains a brief outline of the material it will cover. The discussion on each topic, although briefer than many conventional physiology texts, appears to be complete. For physical therapists, the discussions on the nervous, muscular, cardiovascular, and respiratory systems are current and complete. There is little discussion of clinical physiology or of applied physiology that would be of interest to physical therapists.

The book offers the reader a concise review of general physiology. What the book lacks, however, is a visual appeal that would attract students to reading it. The text lacks good-quality illustrations and photographs, which are common in other general physiology textbooks. Although the content of this book is excellent, students taking physiology for the first time may find the book somewhat mundane in its presentation of physiology. Physical therapists looking for a book that provides clinical applications would be disappointed in this text.

Overall, I think the book would appeal to an audience looking for a good general review of physiology. The material is appropriate for physical therapy students, but is probably too advanced for the physical therapist assistant. The book would be an excellent reference for clinicians wanting general information on physiology that is concise and easy to use. Although the book merits review by professors teaching introductory physiology, I think there are other textbooks on the market that would have greater appeal to students in those courses.

Thomas M Mohr, PhD, PT Univ of North Dakota Grand Forks, ND

Dr Mohr is professor and chairman of the physical therapy department at the University of North Dakota, where be teaches courses in neuroscience, physiology, biomechanics, and electrophysiology. He also does research in electromyography and electrotherapy.