Ultimately, medical experts must address the critical questions in medical negligence cases. Medical research, however, can help the plaintiff’s lawyer understand the general subject area, reject non-meritorious cases, and hone in on the real issues in those cases that deserve further investigation. In addition, medical books and other references can be useful at trial in bolstering the opinions of your own experts or in attacking the opinions of opposing experts.

The following list is only a sampling of books that are generally accepted as standard and authoritative in their respective fields. For a more complete listing, see Brandon/Hill Selected List of Books and Journals for the Small Medical Library (Hill, Dorothy R., Bulletin of the Medical Library Association, Vol.87, No.2, April 1999 (revised every two years)). Many books can be ordered from a local bookstore or from Internet sites like Amazon.com. University hospitals have medical libraries and medical bookstores that are open to the public for browsing. Remember that if you are using a book to help establish standard of care, the publishing date should not be after the event in question. Most of these books have prior editions that can be located from used booksellers listed on the Internet (e.g., those linked to Barnes & Noble).

Anatomy
	Basic Atlas of Sectional Anatomy with Correlated Imaging, 3d ed.
	Bo, Walter J. [and others]. (Philadelphia, Saunders, 1998) - $120.00
	Gray’s Anatomy: The Anatomical Basis of Medicine and Surgery, 38th ed.
	Williams, Peter L., ed. (Philadelphia, Saunders [Churchill Livingstone], 1995) - $195.00
Anesthesiology
	Anesthesia, 5th ed.
	Miller, Ronald D., ed. (Philadelphia, Saunders [Churchill Livingstone], 1999) 2 vol. - $250.00
	Clinical Anesthesiology, 2nd ed.
	Morgan, Jr., Edward G. and Mikhail, Maged S., (Appleton & Lange, 1996) - $49.95
	Complications in Anesthesiology, 2nd ed.
	Gravenstein, Nikolaus [and others], eds. (Philadelphia, Lippincott-Raven, 1996) - $169.00
Cardiovascular System
	Current Diagnosis and Treatment in Cardiology,
	Crawford, ed., (Stamford, Appleton & Lange, 1995).
	Heart Disease: A Textbook of Cardiovascular Medicine, 5th ed.
	Braunwald, Eugene, ed. (Philadelphia, Saunders, 1997) 2 vol. - $150.00 (1 volume ed. - $135.00)
	Hurst’s The Heart: Arteries and Veins, 9th ed.
	Alexander, Wayne [and others], eds. (New York, McGraw-Hill, 1998) 2 vol. - $149.00 (1 vol. - $130.00)
Critical Care
	Critical Care, 3d ed.
	Civetta, Joseph M. [and others] eds. (Philadelphia, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 1997) - $195.00
	Current Critical Care Diagnosis and Treatment, 1st ed.
	Bongard, Frederic S. [and others], (Stamford, Appleton & Lange, 1994) - $54.95
	Pediatric Critical Care, 2d ed.
	Fuhrman, Bradley P., and Zimmerman, Jerry J., (St. Louis, Mosby, 1998) - $169.00
Diagnosis
	The Merck Manual of Diagnosis and Therapy, 17th ed.
	Berkow, Robert, ed. (Rahway, N.J., Merck & Co., 1999) - $28.00
	Textbook of Physical Diagnosis: History and Examination, 3d ed.
	Swartz, Mark H. (Philadelphia, Saunders, 1998) - $57.95
Dictionaries and Directories
	The Official ABMS Directory of Board Certified Medical Specialists 1998-99, 31st ed.
	American Board of Medical Specialties. (New Providence, N.J., Marquis Who’s Who, 1998) 4 vol. $499.95 - Published annually
	Dorland’s Illustrated Medical Dictionary, 28th ed.
	(Philadelphia, Saunders, 1994) - $47.95
	Stedman’s Medical Dictionary, 26th ed.
	Stedman, Thomas Lathrop, (Philadelphia, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 1995) - $46.95
Emergency Medicine
	Current Emergency Diagnosis and Treatment, 4th ed.
	Saunders, Charles E. and Ho, Mary T. eds., (Norwalk, Appleton & Lange) - $45.00
	Emergency Medicine: Concepts and Clinical Practice, 4th ed.
	Rosen, Peter, and Barkin, Roger M., eds. (St. Louis, Mosby 1998) 3 vol. - $355.00
	Principles and Practice of Emergency Medicine, 4th ed.
	Schwartz, George R. [and others], eds. (Philadelphia, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 1999) - $179.00
Endocrinology and Metabolism
	Williams’ Textbook of Endocrinology, 9th ed.
	Wilson, Jean D. [and others], eds. (Philadelphia, Saunders, 1998) - $150.00
Family Medicine
	Family Medicine: Principles and Practice, 5th ed.
	Taylor, Robert B. [and others], eds. (New York, Springer, 1998) - $130.00
Gastroenterology
	Current Diagnosis & Treatment in Gastroenterology,
	Grendell, James H. [and others], eds. (Stamford, Appleton & Lange, 1996) - $47.50
	Sleisenger and Fordtran’s Gastrointestinal and Liver Disease: Pathophysiology/Diagnosis/Management, 6th ed.
	Feldman, Mark [and others], eds. (Philadelphia, Saunders, 1998) 2 vol. - $205.00