Dr. Pillay V. V., Professor at the Department of Forensic Medicine, Amrita School of Medicine, Kochi, published his latest reference book on Toxicology. The book titled ‘Third Edition of Comprehensive Medical Toxicology’ was officially released by Dr. S. Senthilkumaran, President of the Indian Society of Toxicology during its Executive Committee Meeting held in Kochi on November 12, 2017.
The new edition of Comprehensive Medical Toxicology is the most exhaustive reference source on medical toxicology in the world, written by a single author based on 9 years of extensive research, and comprises 1300 pages with 5 sections that covers the entire field of medical toxicology. The book has 21 chapters dealing with toxic profiles of 2281 toxic agents individually or collectively, with 4054 references updated up to 2017 cited throughout the text. The book has 3761 indexed items, 361 tables and 63 boxes, interspersed with 557 black & white and colour images. The book is in hard cover with art paper and multicolour textual print.
The extracts from a few reviews of the previous edition of the book by world renowned toxicologists are reproduced below.
“This is one of the first references this reviewer has analyzed that was published outside of North America, and I must say “very impressive!” Containing thousands of recent references, it is clear that the author has reviewed the current international literature, in his compilation of this work, and the reader should find that the medical treatment recommendations therefore are of the moment. Having reviewed the toxicological literature covering the last 200 years, and written over 250 book reviews of toxicological references, this reviewer feels that this work is of considerable merit, and should have a place in the reference libraries of toxicologists wherever they may be located in the world. For the information contained in this volume, it is a definite bargain for the price,” commented Mr. John H. Trestrail III, Toxicologist, Center for the Study of Criminal Poisoning, Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA.
“I am pleased to recommend Dr. V.V. Pillay’s book to my colleagues in clinical toxicology. This is a reference book that will be of greatest value to the practicing clinical toxicologist rather than students. It is encyclopedic like Martindale or Baselt, or some of our databases, but much more interesting to read. I found it to be authoritative and current for all of the agents that I checked, and it will be a valuable addition to the books that I keep next to my telephone. I would rate it at 9.0 on a scale of 0 to 10,” commented Mr. John Doull, Professor of Pharmacology, Toxicology and Therapeutics, University of Kansas Medical Center, USA, Former President of the American Board of Toxicology & Society of Toxicology.
“This is a new book from V. V. Pillay the author of “Modern Medical Toxicology”. As the title implies, this is not a handbook or medical students’ guide, but a comprehensive large-format book which covers all aspects of medical toxicology. Each chapter is backed up by comprehensive references, in some cases exceeding several hundred. There are numerous and informative footnotes and text boxes of relevant case histories. The book is undoubtedly well researched,” commented Mr. G Fernando, Consultant Forensic Pathologist and Toxicologist, United Kingdom.
“There is a lot of useful information in this book, which will appeal to medical students and physicians in those countries whenever diagnosis and treatment of poisoning is an issue. All chapters end with supporting literature references, and the book as a whole contains thousands of citations. Scattered throughout the book are a number of text boxes, which provide interesting historical glimpses and information about events related to use of poisons and mass poisoning disasters. I particularly liked reading these “historical nuggets,” commented Mr. A Wayne Jones, Professor of Forensic Toxicology, University Hospital, Linköping, Sweden.
“This is a new book from V.V. Pillay the author of “Modern Medical Toxicology”. As the title implies, this is not a handbook or medical students’ guide, but a comprehensive large-format book which covers all aspects of medical toxicology. Each chapter is backed up by comprehensive references, in some cases exceeding several hundred. There are numerous and informative footnotes and text boxes of relevant case histories. The book is undoubtedly well researched”, commented by G. Fernando, Consultant Forensic Pathologist and Toxicologist, United Kingdom on the previous edition of the book.
