The Merck Manual Home Health Handbook

very useful

American version of Complete Medical reference, ideal for family health awareness. The sections are laid out logically and concisely, easily presented for the lay person. Delivered quickly and in pristine condition, huge saving on the well known high street bookstores.

Bought this book for an elderly friend who has delved into it already and is very satisfied with the information provided

I have just started a Reflexology course and used this book for my first few pathologies. All the information I was looking for was in this book, hope this continues and would recommend.

Excellent medical info written in language which is comprehensible to the lay person. Not for putting in your handbag, though, as it's a big fat tome. The Merck Manual of Medical Information (Merck Manual of Medical Information, Home Ed.)

An excellent book

Generally this is an excellent reference. It is thorough, and conveys a heck of a lot of valuable info while still being understandable to intelligent, non-science oriented laypeople. I have learned a huge amount from this book including medical terminology which they helpfully include alongside lay terms and explanations. The best value of any medical book! (though it could use a lot more illustrations - I very highly recommend Alice Roberts' the Complete Human Body which has amazing illustrations, to complement this book for the layperson).However, because the info on my disease ME/CFIDS (Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/ Chronic Fatigue Immune Dysfunction Syndrome) is a negative-five-star I am going to rate this only two stars.I really don't like rating this book so low and definitely understand anyone thinking it inappropriate to rate it so low considering the overall excellent content. After all, the ME section is only one section of very many. However, the amount of iatrogenic morbidity caused by this sort of egregious misinformation on ME is so tremendous, I think it is important to draw attention to it with a two star rating. Pls forgive me if you disagree.Editors: please make the section accurate by consulting the ME/CFS Canadian Consensus Criteria and the 2011 ME International Consensus Criteria and the 2012 IACFS/ME Primer (and me if you need more info) and I will of course be elated to rate the manual five stars.There are many patently invalid statements here such as "[s]ome studies have suggested infection with the Epstein-Barr virus... or HIV as a possible cause of CFS. However, current research indicates that these viruses probably do not cause this syndrome." p. 2109.ME is an extremely debilitating neuro-endocrine immune & mitochondrial disease, affecting 1 M Americans and strongly associated with otherwise extremely rare lymphomas (other than in AIDS). There is a bit of accurate info here, but mostly very misleading or incorrect such as 'CFS refers to severe fatigue of unknown psychological or physical origin' (p.2109)- actually that's Idiopathic Chronic Fatigue. This is like saying 'Alzheimer's refers to severe forgetfulness of unknown physical or psychological origin.' ME is a specific extremely disabling disease in which extreme fatigue is a prominent symptom, just like MS, Leukemia, AIDS and many other diseases.Again, pls see the ME/CFS Canadian Consensus Criteria, the 2012 ME International Consensus Criteria or the 2012 IACFS/ME Primer for accurate info.Thanks for your consideration and take care everyone,Justin

This book is a treasure! If you are interested in medicine or want to know more about ilnesses, their symptoms, possible treatments, then this book is just for you. It is the answer to almost all medical questions. I would definately recommend it as a guide for the whole family.