Chew FS, Maldijan C, Mulcahy H. Broken Bones: The Radiological Atlas of Fractures and Dislocations. 2nd ed. Cambridge University Press; 2016; 406 pp; 1101 ill; $89.99

This is an atlas showing fractures and dislocations of many areas of the body. Two chapters (54 pages) deal with cervical and thoracolumbar spine injuries. It seems a bit unusual to have an atlas entitled Broken Bones and not include fractures of the skull, skull base, temporal bones, and facial bones. Are these not bones? Anyway, the spine imaging and the descriptions are adequate for the intended purpose of the book; however, when the authors describe entities such as atlantooccipital dislocations and mention associated tectorial membrane disruption, they fail to show that “disruption” with MR imaging. One recognizes that in modern-day spine trauma imaging, an analysis of the ligaments, in addition to bone imaging, is crucial. A neuroradiologist might consider the analysis in this book of spine trauma and acute fractures incomplete, even though some MRs are illustrated. There is not a sufficiently detailed analysis of ligamentous injuries associated with those fractures/dislocations to significantly advance our ability to precisely image these patients.

This book would be of limited interest to a neuroradiologist.