Book review

Abstract

Injuries to tendons and ligaments are common and can arise acutely or as a consequence of overuse. They often take a long time to heal, and this may significantly reduce the amount of exercise that an individual is able to take. As governments around the world increasingly recognize and promote the importance of exercise in preventing a wide range of health-related problems (e.g. obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular disease), this has highlighted the need to improve our understanding of tendon and ligament healing and regeneration. Thus, this book is a welcome addition to the literature. It covers a wide variety of topics in its 15 chapters, and deals with tendons and ligaments from a broad range of perspectives. These include anatomical, biomechanical and surgical. Much of the content is what one might predict in a book with this title. Thus, it deals comprehensively with the basic structure and function of tendons, ligaments and joint capsules, has an excellent coverage of tendons in the hand, several useful chapters on tendons in the shoulder and an account of cruciate ligament repair that sets current approaches in a historical context. The editor (William R. Walsh) is the senior author of an excellent, elementary overview on how tendons and ligaments can be evaluated clinically and tested biomechanically. Those new to the field may find this chapter particularly useful. The book is well illustrated and the quality of the paper is good. However, few photographs are in colour. Notable exceptions are the excellent plates that accompany the account of the healing of ligaments and tendons to bone by Weiler and colleagues. Particularly striking, to the current reviewer, is the image of Sharpey's fibres at an unnamed fibrous enthesis. In summary, this is a useful book and should appeal to a wide range of scientists and clinicians – including not only anatomists, but also orthopaedic surgeons and sports medicine specialists. However, I am puzzled by the lack of any chapter on the Achilles tendon. As injuries to the mid-substance of the Achilles tendon, its ‘false sheath’ and its calcaneal attachment site (insertional tendinopathies) are well documented in the literature, some treatment of this topic might have been expected. There are inevitably a small number of typographical errors and the writing style of the numerous authors varies somewhat. Nevertheless, the overall impression is a most favourable one and the editor should be congratulated on a task well done.