Fitzpatrick's Dermatology in General Medicine is the classic dermatology textbook1- 2—so the question of whether a skin care professional needs to own it is moot. The real question is whether to buy the new seventh edition or scrape by with the 6th edition for a few more years.
Opening the new edition, we noted its dedication to Dr Thomas B. Fitzpatrick, who served as the editor-in-chief of the first 4 editions,
and Dr Irwin M. Freedberg, who served as the editor-in-chief of the fifth and sixth editions; both have died since the release of the sixth edition in 2003.3- 4 In their introduction, the editors highlight the dramatic extent of change in this edition (p xxxiii): “More than 50% of the text and figures of our 257 chapters are new to this edition, as are 50% of the authors.” This recalled for us the days when our medical school professors promised that half of what they taught us would be true (if only they knew which half); luckily, the field of dermatology hasn't changed 50% since 2003, and we dare say that despite the hype, the true content of the sixth and seventh editions hasn't either.