REVIEW OF THE BOOK REPRODUCTIVE SYSTEM AT A GLANCE

This book fulfils a useful niche within the at a glance series; indeed, as the title implies, it is a repository of
information. It enables the medical student to cut down on the time-consuming practice of trolling through
major textbooks to get the basic information required for getting on top of the subject, and as a revision source
for exam preparation. It will also be an invaluable resource for midwives and nurses working in reproductive
medicine.
The Reproductive System at a Glance is split into two parts: Part 1, Normal Human Reproduction and Part 2,
Human Reproductive Disorders. This immediately partitions a complex subject into manageable and easily
accessible domains and avoids the danger of the reader getting side-tracked. For example, if one is reading
Phenotypic Sex Differentiation in Part 1, this doesn't become complicated by abnormalities, which are dealt
with separately in Part 2. Part 1 is divided into twenty-five chapters and Part 2 into twenty-three chapters. Each
chapter consists of two substantially packed pages. This is a nice compact source text, with plenty of good
labelled and coloured diagrams. However, the preface of the book is perhaps a little misleading in that it says
the book consists of twenty-five chapters in Part 1, in which it covers normal human reproduction, commencing
with embryology. This it clearly doesn't, as the first chapter is on the pituitary gland. One has to wait until
chapter six, in which the topic is on Gonadal Development in the Embryo.
Chapters one to four deal with the importance of reproductive hormones - their sources and mechanisms of
action. This is followed by reproductive genetics, gonadal development, and sex differentiation. In chapters
eight to eleven the gross and microscopic anatomy of the system is discussed, and here one must be aware of
slight differences in nomenclature between American and UK terminology: in the chapter Gross anatomy of the
female reproductive tract, the intramural parts of the isthmus region of the uterine (Fallopian) tubes are called
cornua (horns).
The chapters continue in a sequential series, covering puberty, male reproductive physiology, menstrual cycle,
sexual response, fertilisation, and pregnancy through to labour and lactation. Chapters twenty-four and twentyfive deal with the menopause and contraception. Chapters twenty-six onwards deal with reproductive system
disorders, beginning with abnormalities of male and female development, including a section on gender
assignment. Other chapters include precocious puberty, amenorrhoea, and sexual dysfunction, for which the
authors use a wonderful, easily understood diagram. Infertility, pregnancy risks with multiple gestations,
pregnancy loss, labour abnormalities, and pre-eclampsia are also included. The chapter dealing with benign and
malignant diseases of the breast has a very nice table with the determinants of breast cancer and the relative
risks. Testicular tumours and diseases of the prostate are covered next, followed by chapters covering ovarian
neoplasms, endometrial and cervical cancers, genetic imprinting and reproductive tract tumours. The final three
chapters deal with sexually transmitted diseases of both bacterial and viral origin.
The book ends with a bank of MCQs with answers. This will be very useful for the student when revising for
exams and for self-testing after having read the relevant chapter.
I have a few minor criticisms, not on content but on layout. The font size for the contents list is too small; in
contrast, the table and figure acknowledgements, have large and well-spaced text. The split into Parts 1 and 2

would have been helped visually by inserting a page between the continuous chapters, i.e. a page with the
heading Part 2 between chapters 25 and 26. But these are minor cavils to this otherwise positive review. The
Reproductive System at a Glance will be particularly useful for those who want a user-friendly overview of
both normal and abnormal anatomy and physiology of the male and female reproductive systems.