Anatomy and Physiology

Reviewed by Shauna McNulty, Assistant Professor, Umpqua Community College on 6/20/17

Comprehensiveness rating: 4

The comprehensiveness of this work is comparable to other anatomy and physiology texts that are geared toward undergraduate coursework. The table of contents is effective and provides a nice linked design to the various sections within the work. In addition, there is a nice glossary with listed terms appearing at the end of each chapter. The text offers a good overview of each system with the basics of anatomy and physiology covered. There is also a review section with questions at the end of each chapter that offers questions for the students to test their comprehension. This is most appropriate for introductory courses, as it lacks some of the detail you may find in more advanced texts.

Content Accuracy rating: 4

The text appeared to be unbiased and fairly balanced with both anatomy and physiology. I did not notice any issues with accuracy, and there were few grammatical and editing errors. Some chapters, such as the skeletal system, are more geared toward the anatomy, but this is consistent with other publisher's books. If a more in-depth discussion of the physiology is warranted, then a separate text or resource may be needed.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 4

The content appears to be up-to-date. The chapters contain clinical sections that connect the concepts to current medical technology, procedures, and pathologies. There are in-text links that tie the chapter content to outside websites that offer additional resources, which is a nice way to supplement the chapter. In addition, there is a brief section devoted to development within many chapters. Chapters are often not as detailed as comparable standard format texts, but are still appropriate for the introductory student. I believe that this text is relevant and has good short-term longevity, though medical advances and website changes will require future editing.

Clarity rating: 4

The text reads easily and uses clear and concise language. Complex terminology is explained coherently and concepts are often paired with a relevant image. The images themselves are effective, but not quite as detailed and/or useful as the standard format texts that I have encountered.

Consistency rating: 4

The structure of the text appears consistent and uniform from chapter to chapter, which helps with overall clarity and guidance for the reader.

Modularity rating: 4

The text's modularity is good and it is easy to navigate the subsections of each chapter. This is another point of commonality between this text and standard format texts. Subheadings are clear and easy for the reader to navigate.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 4

The organization of the text is similar to other textbooks and it proceeds in a logical fashion from the chemical and cellular level to the major systems of the body. The structure of each chapter is also similar, as the text is punctuated by clinical anecdotes and descriptions where appropriate and many conclude with developmental aspects of growth and formation of the system. The flow of each chapter is also logical and readable.

Interface rating: 4

The interface of the book was good overall. The text often links to outside resources and videos that help the reader visualize and understand important concepts. I did notice that some of the links were outdated, or no longer linked to the stated content. An example is the section on the microanatomy of bone. It links back to an Openstax page that no longer contains the video. Many of the links to university and college sites were excellent and provided nice views of slides, videos, etc.

Grammatical Errors rating: 4

The text had few grammatical errors and they were fairly easy to overlook and didn't hinder the readability of the chapter.

Cultural Relevance rating: 4

The text appears culturally relevant and I did not come across any sections that were offensive or insensitive.

Overall this is a nice introductory text that covers the basics of anatomy and physiology with clarity. The in-text links also allow the instructor to pull additional resources to supplement the information found in each chapter. The images are the major drawback, as they are often not as clear and detailed as comparable textbooks, but the price could easily outweigh any reservations on the part of an instructor looking to adopt this text.