Any other vascular residents or fellows out there? Does anyone have any reviews of some of the major vascular surgery texts.
I am getting the Valentine anatomic exposure book which I hear is good and the Mastery of vascular and endo surgery by Zelenock.
Any suggestions (you know other than the standard Rutherford and Moore)
Rutherford is the standard reference text, and most vascular surgeons have it on their shelf. But I'm not sure I know anyone who has actually read most of this large 2 volume text... rather than just claiming that they have done so... and then retained it. Most people use it to look up stuff and may read various complete chapters on various topics. So this would not be my first choice for an initial textbook.
Moore is a good book, and most vascular surgeons I know have actually read most of this book (since it is at a reasonable size one could actually read). It helps that most vascular fellows get to go to the Moore course, where they are given a copy as part of the course. I would plan on getting it then, and not paying for it now if you don't have it already.
If you don't have a complete text and want one at this time, a good choice would be "Comprehensive Vascular and Endovascular Surgery" Hallett. Very up to date, and well illustrated. It's actually much better and more detailed than Moore, so if I could only have 1 textbook, I really like Hallett. You have to remember Moore textbook changes like molasses, and even though it's now on its 8th edition, it's the same old format.
I have Mastery of Surgery (which has good section on Vascular), but I don't have Mastery of Vascular Surgery, but I imagine it's the same format where it is more oriented towards actual performance of the surgery itself, starting with short indications section, and then positioning, and then detailed surgical procedure, and then short postop care section. This is great, but certainly does not take the place of an actual comprehensive textbook. Eventually you should definitely get it, but you might be better served getting an actual comprehensive textbook first. i.e You would need to read Moore or Hallett to do well on your Written boards; but you would need to read Moore or Hallett, and also Mastery to do well on you Oral boards.
Valentine is a good anatomic exposure book, but I think it's more than most people need, most of the time. The newer editions appears to be better illustrated (including color drawings) than the edition I have, which is all black/white line drawings. It's standard for everyone to rave about this book, but I've always thought it's a little bit overrated. But it's good to have it on your shelf, at some point, as a reference. A basic exposure book like the Rutherford Vascular Exposures book will actually suffice for >80% of most surgeries, especially starting out. If you want something slightly more in depth than Rutherford, then I like "Comprehensive Vascular Exposures" Stoney. For something specialized like Vertebral artery surgery, then I like "Surgery of the Arteries to the Head" Berguer. And of course, Mastery will show a lot of the exposure anyways.
Truth is that if you stay in Vascular, you will likely end up with multiple Textbook, Atlas, and Exposure books, including all of the above. If I was starting out, and had nothing already, and my program had no designated text... then I would get Hallett and start reading that first, and get Rutherford Vascular Exposure book (Not the textbook). Then I would get Moore for free at the Moore course. Then I would pick up Mastery and Valentine, and then lastly I would get Rutherford along the way.
