Shackelford's Diagnosis of Surgical Disease appears to be, in a sense, a companion work to his invaluable Surgery of the Alimentary Tract published in 1955. This work discusses in considerable detail the diagnostic features of virtually all conditions which a surgeon might encounter. The richness of the author's personal experience is reflected in many chapters which he himself has prepared, but he has unhesitatingly drawn upon the more specialized knowledge of some 22 colleagues for chapters in their particular areas of interest.
Volume 1 includes a most extensive consideration of history taking and physical examination, followed by a section of cytopathology and one on radioisotope scanning. The remainder of this volume is devoted to lesions of the nervous system, head and neck, breast, esophagus, and thorax, including heart and lungs. Heart disease in children and in adults is properly considered in separate chapters, written by cardiologists working in these fields.