Review of Current Literature: Beyond Plastic Surgery
Charles Beaver Edwards, *
The title of this book on maxillofacial prosthetics is intriguing, and the author is knowledgeable in the subject with years of experience. However, it falls short of being a useful professional text and is too expensive ($12.95) for leisure reading.
In this relatively short book (135 pages), the author combines personal experiences and information of general interest with a how-to-do-it approach to cosmetic restorations of the face and body. Unfortunately, it is incomplete as a text book and too detailed for casual reading. Perhaps of more importance, the book does not reflect the advanced state of the art. The author is still using latex for skin and cotton for soft tissue rather than plastics, such as polyvinyl chloride skin and polyurethane foam.
The subject is a difficult one, and very little has been written about it. To deal comprehensively with cosmetic restoration, however, functional as well as passive prostheses must be considered. "Cosmesis" involves not only static appearance but how something looks in motion and how it feels, sounds, and smells. And as the author undoubtedly appreciates, it is the prosthetist-patient relationship as much as anything which helps to make people happy.
Maurice A. LeBlanc, C.P.
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