Book Review: Feline Medicine, Review and Test, Taylor and Harvey, 1st Edition

‘Feline Medicine Review & Test’ consists of nine chapters split mainly by body system with five to fourteen cases per chapter. Individual cases are broken down into logical subsections with clinical information followed by questions and answers. It follows the thought process that you would go through if the case were your own and the questions you would ask yourself. Some problem based books have questions and answers on different pages, I found the format in this book far preferable (answer directly following question) as there is no flicking backwards and forwards between the two.

The online cases (30) are extra and not cases from the book itself. These cases are much shorter with less clinical information given than in the book so would be more suitable for accessing on the move or when commuting. The questions are all multiple choice with an explanation of the correct answer that appears after you have selected a response. I tried using the online resources on a smart phone (iPhone 4S) and because the borders of the webpages are quite wide I found the text wrapped excessively so it was difficult to read as there were too few words per line. However when I tried on a desktop computer the resources were nicely laid out, I suspect that screen size is the limiting factor so use on a tablet would also be more appropriate than on a phone.

I see the book being most useful to students in the later years of their training and to general practitioners with an interest in feline medicine. For students it could be used if they are wanting to brush up on their feline medicine, general interpretation of results (especially bloods) or in the throes of revision for finals, particularly for problem solving format exams. Following each case there are further reading references which is great if a more in depth knowledge of the condition is desired. For lecturers this could be a good book to signpost students to where they could work through specific cases related to a subject area.

For general practitioners there are some standard cases that you would see frequently in practice but there are also plenty to push the more advanced practitioner with challenging work ups for rare conditions and some country specific diseases (including the UK, US and Australia). I particularly liked the addition of the ‘If finances are limited’ section for some of the cases, a nod to the fact that realistically extensive (and expensive) work ups are not always possible. The book also has a wipe clean cover, always handy in a practice setting!

Overall I would recommend this book, I’ve really enjoyed using it so far and I will certainly be utilising it to refresh and test my clinical knowledge as part of my Continuing Professional Development (CPD) in the future.

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