Bone Dysplasias: An Atlas of Constitutional Disorders of Skeletal Development

The dysplasias of bone collectively affect a large number of individuals, but each dysplasia, if not rare, is certainly uncommon. This book lists 82 separate diseases and illustrates each one. For each entity, a one-page characterization is included along with a bibliography of a few articles. The authors are such acknowledged experts in diagnosis in this restricted field that one may be tempted to ask too much of their book. For instance, one would look in vain for a roentgenographic classification of dysplasias that is logical or more useful than any other previously proposed. Their radiological classification groups the syndromes according to eight criteria: skeletal dysplasias with predominantly epiphyseal involvement; skeletal dysplasias with predominantly metaphyseal involvement; skeletal development with major involvement of the spine; mucopolysaccharidoses and mucolipidoses; skeletal dysplasias due to anarchic development of bone constituents; osteolyses; skeletal dysplasias with predominant involvement of single sites or segments; and skeletal dysplasias