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The Logic of Laboratory Medicine, 2nd ed. Dennis A. Noe, 2001, 2.9 MB (222 pp. pdf file), free. Available at http://users.rcn.com/dennisanoe.

University of Virginia, Department of Pathology, Charlottesville, VA 22908

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The author states on his web site: "I have decided to publish this edition as an e-book so that I do not have to revise the book in its entirety before updating it. Instead, I plan to revise the book chapter by chapter over time and to make each revised chapter available as soon as its revision is complete". The first edition was published by Urban & Schwarzenberg in 1985.

The author also states his purpose for writing this book: "The effective use of laboratory study results depends upon a working knowledge of probabilistic decision-making and on a thorough understanding of how the entities measured in the laboratory relate to the physiologic processes of interest to the clinician. This book presents a comprehensive discussion on these topics, thereby providing a logical framework for the use of laboratory studies in medical practice".

This book is highly mathematical in its presentation, and my reading revealed that the mathematical and systematic aspects of clinical laboratory testing are the author’s true interests. In these areas, his presentations are well-written, comprehensive, and clear. The early chapters of his book (Chapters 1–6) and the final chapter (Chapter 12), which tap into these areas of strength, make for the best reading. I cannot, however, give Chapters 7–11 high grades.

I like the concept of an e-book that is freely available online and the author’s intent to update chapters one by one and to post . . . [Full Text of this Article]