Thoracic Surgery, Softcover reprint of the original 1st ed. 1989
Surgical Procedures on the Chest and Thoracic Cavity

It is a great pleasure and honor to be asked to participate in the translation of this important and historical volume on thoracic surgery and to provide this foreword. Martin Kirschner of Mannheim/Heidelberg was an early pioneer in thoracic and esophageal surgery. His operation for bypass of the esophagus using the entire stomach remains a standard of the surgical armamentarium to this date. The original Kirschner Textbook of Surgery was a standard in its day. We are fortunate that Professors H. Pichlmaier and F.W. Schildberg and other colleagues have provided us with this important modern successor of a classic textbook. The reader is rewarded by an extensive treatise which includes not only the most up to date techniques in pulmonary, esophageal, mediastinal, and chest wall (including breast) surgery but also provides an excellent perspective on the techniques used by pioneers in the field. Although some of these early techniques are not commonly used today, knowledge of their use and application broadens the capability of the thoracic surgeon. Changing times bring renewed problems with infectious diseases. Knowledge of the management of the pleural space and pulmonary infectious problems is a critical part of the education of the thoracic surgeon.

A. Functional Operability in Thoracic Surgical Procedures.- B. Surgical Instruments, Materials, and Approaches. Appendix by M.M. Wanke With 26 Figures 7.- C. Perioperative Management.- D. Surgical Treatment of Thoracic Trauma and Chest Wall Diseases. With 31 Figures.- E. Operations on the Breast. With 30 Figures.- F. Operations on the Lung and Tracheobronchial System. With 78 Figures.- G. Procedures on the Mediastinum. With 8 Figures.- H. Procedures on the Diaphragm. With 12 Figures.- I. Procedures on the Esophagus.- K. Topography of Surgically Important Regions 15 Anatomic Plates see inside back cover.