Essential Clinical Immunology

At first glance, the format and content seemed to be thorough, well developed, and beautifully composed. I thought it would be a beneficial addition to general pathology and immunology books by being insightful and cohesive by offering an concise integrative look at the immunology of human disease. After reading the introductory chapter, the CNS, and renal chapters I can say that the book certainly falls short through terrible editing and lack of cohesive insight. At a fundamental level, it fails by trying too hard to convey complex ideas in an overly simplified yet somehow wordy language. This problem is exacerbated by a terrible organization and flow of ideas. Rather than explain this I will instead quote: Introduction on B cells "Antibodies are produced by naïve B cells and are called plasma cells. These cells express immunoglobulins on their surface. In the early stages, B cells first show intracellular -chains and then surface IgM. Through the process described earlier, these cells can later express IgG, IgA, or IgE, a phenomenon known as isotype switching. The final type of surface immunoglobulin determines the class of antibody secreted... Deficiencies in either molecule lead to severe immunodeficiency states with only IgM produced but no IgG or IgA antibodies." Renal: IgA Nephropathy "...These usually occur after a respiratory infection. Minimal proteinuria is noted. IgA nephropathy is made by kidney biopsy only. The hallmark of this disease is mesangial deposition of IgA, which is prominently noted on immunofluorescence. This deposition is associated with focal mesangial expansion, which can be seen on light microscopy." This book would be absolutely terrible for someone trying to learn immunology. Simple ideas are not presented in a way conducive to understanding and advanced concepts are not presented in any unique or insightful fashion. I can blast through Robbins Path or other highly advanced texts at high speeds, but with this book there are many instances where the overly simplified yet convoluted language causes you to have to read very slowly just because of terrible sentence structure and a passive tense. In addition, the book neglects important features of some diseases. For instance, in reading about Myasthenia Gravis there is NOT one mention of germinal follicles in the THYMUS! The book simply neglects to mention this freak anomaly of B cells in the thymus. In all, I was terribly disappointed and would not recommend this text to anyone.