Main description:

Today gastroenterology and hepatology have reached unprecedented clinical relevance and clinicians must think in ways never imagined in the past. At the same time, in the academic context both medical students and teaching staff have experienced a significant increase in the amount of notions to learn and to teach over the years.

The need to have a student-friendly dedicated textbook and a valuable resource for academic staff has prompted important contributions by a number of European gastroenterologists and hepatologists. They have been gathered into this handbook, which focuses on what students need to know today regarding the epidemiology, pathophysiology, diagnosis and treatment of digestive and liver diseases.

This handbook is comprised of 60 chapters subdivided into six sections. Section 1 mainly focuses on evidence-based patient management. Sections 2 and 3 cover upper and lower gastrointestinal tract diseases. Section 4 discusses pancreas diseases, while sections 5 and 6 deal with the biliary system and the liver. An additional seventh section contains an image gallery with pictures of gastrointestinal, endoscopy, pancreatico-biliary endoscopy (ERCP), and radiology (including CT scan and MRI) provided to facilitate the reader’s understanding of the diseases. Finally, a self-assessment section with multiple-choice questions is included at the end of each chapter, so that students may test their own knowledge on the topic.