Like many people, I first bought the Atlas of Human Anatomy by Frank Netter, M.D., when I was a first year medical student. Truthfully, looking back, I probably never needed to buy any other anatomy books.
The drawings in the book are watercolors personally drawn by Dr. Netter. The details in the text are almost lifelike. He uses examples of pathology scattered throughout the text. He covers the entire body, system by system. He also intersperses the occaisional x-ray. These helped make sense of anatomical concepts that can be difficult.
Now that I'm a resident, I don't use Netter's text like I did as a student. However, if I ever have an anatomy question, I always turn to his book. It will always be a part of my medical library.
A little about Dr. Netter:
Dr. Netter (born 1906) initially trained as an artist and then went to medical school. He trained in a surgical resident, finishing in 1933. His true love was art, and he continued to follow it. He first started doing medical illustrations for the Ciba Pharmaceutical Co. in the 1930s. His first collection of anatomy drawings was published in 1953. Medical students have learned from him ever since. Sadly, in 1991, Dr. Frank Netter passed away. His legacy will live forever in his drawings.
The book is available in hardcover, softcover, and is now also available on CD-ROM.
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