Hospital for Special Surgery's Illustrated Tips and Tricks in Foot and Ankle Surgery

This volume in the Illustrated Tips and Tricks orthopedics series focuses on the foot and ankle. It is very much a hands-on approach manual and provides a no-nonsense approach to each topic. It includes access to an electronic format as well.
 
This book is designed to provide readers with the benefit of the experiences and wisdom of the primary authors. It is, truly, a compendium of their shared and personal experiences in a broad array of foot and ankle procedures. The electronic version aids in accessibility, since this is physically a big book and not readily portable.
 
The intended audience is practicing surgeons, as well as residents and fellows, primarily in the fields of orthopedics and podiatry. Given the book's premise and presentation, it meets these objectives. The authors are well known and respected in their field. Of the slightly more than 30 contributors, nearly half are residents in various levels of training in orthopedic surgery and their relative expertise is not known.
 
The book is arranged into 30 chapters covering selected forefoot conditions, flatfoot and cavus foot deformities, ankle arthritis, tendon disorders, and foot and ankle trauma. Each chapter gets straight down to the practicalities of the performing the procedures. Indications for the most part are not discussed.
Each procedure starts with a bullet-pointed instrument list, positioning, and a description of the procedure. Surgical tips and pearls are highlighted where relevant. Each chapter is well illustrated with excellent use of color plates, line drawings, and diagnostic imaging where relevant.
 
This book is of excellent quality and will be most useful to those whose primary focus is foot and ankle surgery as well as those who encounter foot and ankle pathology as part of more a general musculoskeletal practice. While many are reference tomes, which this book does not compete with, its nearest rival would be Foot and Ankle Surgery: Tricks of the Trade, Raikin (Thieme, 2018). It is slightly different in format, but it offers an individual perspective with tips and pearls. It will have its devotees nonetheless and is slightly more practical in how it handles each topic. Recommended.