Symptom to Diagnosis: An Evidence-Based Guide

This book was so useful I actually enjoyed reading it! Chapters are organized by chief complaint presented in case format. A differential is created from the H & P. The etiology and epidemiology of the most likely, active alternatives and must-not-miss diseases are discussed. A series of tests and studies are then presented and their usefulness assessed for differentiating between the diagnoses in question. The format of presenting information this way is extremely logical and matches the thinking process of a trained clinician when assessing a new patient. Too often, textbooks go on flights of academic fancy that either present too much or irrelevant information to the actual practice of medicine. Symptoms to Diagnosis was created with the needs of med students in mind and is thus extremely useful and an absolute pleasure to read. MS-III

This is one of the most important works on diagnosis that I have ever read. Most books and classes on diagnosis teach information about diseases. From the information learned about diseases, a physician is then supposed to form a conclusion about the diagnosis. This approach is different. It teaches the diagnostic process and provides a logical and evidence based approach to arriving at the correct diagnosis. It is complete with up to date lab tests and current clinical strategies. Each chapter in this book is like a separate seminar on the given topic. I have been to many seminars on diagnosis and when I think how much was spent on seminar fees and travel, I find the book to be an extremely good value. I recommend this book for any doctor, nurse or paraprofessional that wants to sharpen diagnostic skills.

I purchased this book while in PA school and have used it as a great refresher/reference during my first year in practice. It walks through case studies, discussing key questions for the differential diagnosis and things not to be missed. I'll admit to getting the most out of every chapter when reading "actively" outloud - though I tend to learn better using that style as well. Overall the cases tend to stick with you and are presented in a logical, informative manner. The only slight negative is that 5 of the chapters are on-line, meaning you have to download them from the website and they aren't included in the book itself. Kind of a bummer. But still very informative, dermatology and health maintence especially. It's really a great book for any clinical student, and I'm more than willing to recommend it to any student. It's well worth the price

The book is a very good aquisition for everyone in clinical training, being usefull for people just starting ward training and being an excelent review for the final years to keep you uptodate and proficiente in ward work. I am at my final year of medicine in Portugal and really apreciate the straithfoward way the information is organised: you can at the same time improve you factual knowlege about diangnosing and also the way you think when you find a new person requiring a diagnosis. This last point is what makes the book stand out of the croud. Also the evidence based aproach is very interesting and usefull in a day to day basis Although some topics are lacking they will probably be adressed in the second edition. Not 5 starts because of the lack of some content (4,5 stars)

great book- wish i would have had it for 2nd year, but is very easy to read & helpful on the wards as well. gives a full differential & presents cases for all. also includes most important labs to order & stats (ex:sensitivity & specificity) for tons of info