I came across this book while on holidays in Australia and I feel fate was smiling upon me that day. Symptom to diagnosis does just as it says, guiding the reader from an initial presentation for example abdominal pain to a final diagnosis using a systematic and evidence based reasoning. The book is organised into 23 chapters each focusing on a specific complaint or symptom. An additional 5 bonus chapters are available online at www.symptomtodiagnosis.com . The first thing that you will notice about the book is it's clarity of writing and logical easy to follow steps. Readers are guided as to how and why various differential diagnosis are formed, what to ask, examine and test to further guide your diagnosis. Algorithms found throughout the book are useful for study and on the wards. Not only does the book guide the reader through to a diagnosis but also explains the pathophsiology behind the diseases making this book somewhat truly unique in it's attempt to truly explain diagnostic reasoning. The same diagnostic reasoning is applied to all the complaints in a comprehensive manner and thus helps compound the readers understanding and as such will allow the reader to apply the same processes to new complaints in clinical practice. A useful section on statistics and diagnostic tests at the start is clear and easy to follow. A good index allows ease of use. This book is an excellent choice for people entering the clinical years wanting to learn a solid diagnostic method- which is often poorly taught in medical school. It's inclusion on the statistical reliability, sensitivity and specificity of tests makes it a good source for those in their final year wishing to impress on their examinations. Overall I think this is a great book, it is the type of reasoning and clarity that one will need to become a good physician and something that should be taught in all medical schools. It is bound to be a bible to all those entering their clinical years. Title; Book review; Symptom to diagnosis, An evidence based guide. By; Scott D.C. Stern MD, Adam S. Cifu MD, Diane Altkorn MD ISBN; 0-07-146389-5 Publisher; Lange (richucc2003)