Book Review

Pearls and Pitfalls in Cosmetic Occuloplastic Surgery. Morris E. Hartstein, John B. Holds, and Guy G. Massry. New York, NY: Springer Sciences + Business Media, Inc.; 2008, 546 pages, hardcover, $99. ISBN: 978-0-387-25389-3.

It is with great pleasure that I provide a review of Pearls and Pitfalls in Cosmetic Occuloplastic Surgery by Drs. Hartstein, Holds, and Massry. The book has been designed as a quick reference guide for occuloplastic surgeons, ophthalmologists, facial plastic surgeons, and general plastic surgeons. The book has been divided into 12 parts with the first half of the book focusing on surgical techniques and the latter half on office-based procedures such as fillers, lasers, and skin care. Each part is comprised of several small chapters ranging from 1 to 5 pages. The authors, three seasoned experts in their field of occuloplastic surgery, have put together a well-recognized group of contributing authors, mainly from the occuloplastic community but with a sprinkling from other sub-specialties such as dermatology and facial plastic surgery.

This book, with its very short chapters, is designed as a “how to” reference guide for physicians, outlining various pearls and pitfalls in various techniques. While overall I did find the book educational, my main disappointment was in the brevity of the chapters. Now while this may have been a goal for the authors and of interest to certain readers, it left this surgeon eager for more information at the end of each chapter. Moreover, because of the volume of contributing authors I found too much variability amongst the quality between chapters, including the photographs and illustrations. While this may not be my first purchase of the year, overall I do think the book is a valued addition to any resident library or private practice physicians at various stages in their career.