BOOK REVIEW

Book: S M Bhatnagar, M L Kothari, L A Mehta, M Natarajan; Essentials of

human embryology; 3rd edition, Hyderabad, Orient Longman, 2000.

Embryology is an interesting science, being an intellectual journey in the wonderland

of the human being, literally from a speck called zygote measuring less than 150 microns.
Though the complexity involved in the subject, it is important part of teaching to the medical
students both undergraduate and the post graduates.
The book is paperback bounded, small and handy book easy to carry. The cover page
colour is very eye catchy with a soothing print of the picture depicting the theme of the book.
The title chosen for the book itself is a concise statement of the content of the book. The
edition of the book is mentioned on the on the cover page. Published by Orient Longman, the
four Indian professors who have contributed to the book have dedicated their work to their
inspiring teacher and scientist. The book was first published in 1977 with subsequent two
editions and reprinting in 2002.
The essential features of human embryology have been presented in the book by
organising the contents in two main heads, the general embryology and the systematic
embryology. The content describing the embryological facts in the chapters are precise with
descriptions that are summarised in flow charts and tabulated forms for easy recapitulation
for the students. The chapters in the book are having illustrative diagrams exhaustively
labelled.
The special features of the book are that it gives the basic steps of embryogenesis at
the beginning of each chapter; it concisely correlates between the embryological structures
and its adult derivative, the developmental congenital anomalies, the book also focuses on the
advances in the study of embryology, glossary of relevant terms, the summary at the end of
each chapter with list of question the students can encounter on that particular chapter.
The book is an old edition (2002), though it concisely describes the embryological
developments it does not describe in detail the anomalies and also the recent advance.
The serves as the old literature reference.