Robbins Pathologic Basis of Disease

Abstract

The fourth edition of<i>Robbins Pathologic Basis of Disease</i>by Cotran, Kumar, and Robbins is a masterly update of an already outstanding textbook of pathology. No significant aspect of knowledge relating to human disease or the underlying mechanisms is left unremarked. The opening chapter on cellular injury and inflammation is the best general account of the cellular reactions to injury as they are understood at this time that I know of in the English language, and it is very up-to-date indeed. One of many examples of its currency is the account of the contribution of a disrupted cytoskeleton, in the form of intermediate filaments, to the makeup of the Mallory body and of the neurofibrillary tangle of Alzheimer's disease. Here, the text is updated to summarize and put in perspective the most recent information concerning these cellular changes available since the previous edition in 1984. In addition, more contemporary papers