BOOKS AND PUBLICATIONS
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among radiation therapy, x-ray, imaging, nuclear medicine imaging, ultrasound imaging, MR imaging, radiation injury, radiation
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The Essential Physics of Medical Imag-
ing, Third Edition. J. T. Bushberg,
J. A. Seibert, E. M. Leidholdt, Jr., and J.
M. Boone, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins,
Philadelphia, PA, USA, 2012. 1048 pp.
Price: $199.99. ISBN 9780781780575
(hardcover).
Description
This book is a third edition (second edi-
tion published in 2002) covering var-
ious medical imaging physics topics
including technological advances that
have occurred in the past decade. The
text is divided into four sections: ba-
sic concepts, diagnostic radiology, nu-
clear medicine, and radiation biology
and protection for a total of 21 chap-
ters. It also includes a well-developed
appendices section plus a list of refer-
ences and suggested readings at the end
of each chapter, along with more than
750 colorful illustrations.
Purpose
The authors meet the objectives of
providing readers a one-stop resource
on medical imaging physics and suc-
cessfully address many of the changes
that have occurred from the time of
second edition (2002) to date, espe-
cially the advancements of computed
tomography (multidetector CT), digital
radiography, magnetic resonance imag-
ing (MRI), and informatics.
To keep it relevant to the times,
they have shortened or deleted certain
sections (film-screen systems, conven-
tional mammography, etc.) from the
previous edition and expanded on sec-
077301-1 Med. Phys. 40 (7), July 2013
tions that are currently relevant (radia-
tion dose, informatics, etc.).
Audience
The primary audiences are
radiologists-in-training and gradu-
ate students pursuing medical imaging
studies. The coverage of topics in this
book is also geared toward a larger
audience including medical physicists,
scientists, physicians, and graduate
students.
Content/Features
Of the four distinct sections in this
text, the first and the last sections act
as bookends to the middle two sec-
tions. The first section touches on the
basic concepts of medical imaging and
has five chapters including an expanded
chapter on image informatics.
The second and third sections of the
book titled Diagnostic Radiology and
Nuclear Medicine, respectively, are the
main body of the book. These two sec-
tions have 14 chapters that dwell into
thorough detail, discussion of different
imaging modalities including radiogra-
phy, mammography, fluoroscopy, com-
puted tomography, MRI, ultrasound,
medical x-ray dosimetry, and nuclear
medicine.
The final section is all about ra-
diation biology and radiation protec-
tion. The authors have expanded dis-
cussion on radiation dose that has
garnered attention in the public arena
providing perspectives on radiation
0094-2405/2013/40(7)/077301/1/$30.00
dose and risks and the overall benefits
of medical imaging.
Assessment/Comparison
This book is well written and the
attractive part is the clarity, complete-
ness, and the way it provides detailed
information for anyone interested in
pursuing medical imaging. The authors
are well-known medical physicists who
have been teaching medical physics to
radiology residents for more than 20
years. This is clearly evident in the way
each topic is described in as much de-
tail as is relevant, which is commend-
able. I highly recommend this book to
radiologists-in-training and to gradu-
ate students pursuing medical physics.
The 750+ illustrations in color are an
added bonus for any teaching program
and will greatly benefit any medical
physicists involved in teaching medical
imaging physics. I highly recommend
considering adding this book to the per-
sonal collection of anyone interested in
pursuing studies in medical imaging.
Reviewed by Mahadevappa Mahesh, Ph.D.
Mahadevappa Mahesh is Associate Pro-
fessor of Radiology and Cardiology at
the Johns Hopkins University School of
Medicine and is the Chief Physicist at
the Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore,
MD. He is the author of the book titled
MDCT Physics-The Basics: Technology,
Image Quality and Radiation Dose pub-
lished by Lippincott Williams and Wilkins
in 2009. He teaches medical physics related
topics to medical residents, and undergrad-
uate and graduate students.
© 2013 Doody’s Review Service 077301-1