Book excerpt: I decided to write this book because I am aware that the curriculum of most universities hardly provides for meaningful teaching or learning of orthopaedics at the undergraduate level. It is directed at Medical Students and Junior Surgical and Orthopaedic Residents, who may not have had the opportunity to learn a lot of orthopaedics during their brief introduction to the specialty in the medical school and who may not wish to specialize in orthopaedics but are, nevertheless, required to take care of patients with orthopaedic problems on orthopaedic and non-orthopaedic wards and clinics. The book covers bone diseases and trauma in Four Parts. Part I deals with the basic sciences as applied to orthopaedics. Part II discusses the pathology, diagnosis and treatment of the major groups of bone diseases, including arthritis, metabolic bone diseases, bone and joint infections, congenital abnormalities, bone tumours and back pain. Part III discusses the general principles of diagnosis and treatment of fractures and gives a regional survey of individual fractures of the upper and lower limbs, spine and pelvis. Part IV summarizes sickle-cell disease as it affects the skeleton as well as a mixed bag of less well-known orthopaedic diseases. The contents are based on three previous volumes: Principles and Management of Acute Orthopaedic Trauma (1988; 2004) and Orthopaedic Diseases: Summary of Principles and Management (2006) and A Patient and Carer's Guide to Bone Diseases and Fractures (2010 . I believe that nurses, physiotherapists and radiographers will also find the book useful.