Genetics for Surgeons

Review of leading medical and surgical journals shows that the most frequent area of publication is papers with a genetic or molecular biology component. Some of these papers will involve childhood or prenatal diagnostic issues, while an increasing proportion involve adult-onset single disorders such as neurological disease or familial cancers. In the future, complex multifactorial (or polygenic) diseases such as cardiovascular and respiratory diseases will become more prevalent, and already the ethical issues involved are complex and widely discussed. Surgeons need to know about genetics and how it interacts with modern surgical practice. Inherited diseases contribute to a substantial proportion of the surgical workload. Recognition of a positive history of disease in a family will allow genetic testing and precise diagnosis, leading to the ability to presymptomatically screen at-risk members of a family and allow screening and prevention strategies to be implemented. Preface......Page 9 Contents......Page 11 1. Principles of Genetics for Surgeons......Page 15 2. Common Surgical Conditions with a Hereditary Tendency......Page 27 1. Gastrointestinal Tract......Page 30 2. Skin......Page 41 3. Cardiac......Page 51 4. Respiratory......Page 57 5. Hematologic......Page 65 6. Neurologic......Page 73 3. Systemic Cancers (Benign and Malignant Tumors)......Page 85 1. Endocrine......Page 87 2. Breast......Page 101 3. Colon......Page 114 4. Skin......Page 136 5. Brain......Page 141 4. Topics Surgeons and Anesthetists Should Both Know......Page 149 5. Further reading......Page 157 6. Glossary......Page 159 7. Abbreviations......Page 208 8. Index......Page 210 Morrison (human genetics, University of Ulster, UK) and Spence (biomedical science, University of Ulster, UK) offer an accessible reference on the genetic disorders that surgeons can expect to meet in general surgical practice. Written in non-technical language, with a glossary, list of abbreviations, and color and b&w photos and medical images, the book supplies an introduction to the nomenclature and technology of molecular biology, and will be a useful starting point for those who wish to extend their knowledge. Annotation :2005 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)