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This book represents a symposium on cryosurgery; it was written by many authors and presents an excellent interdisciplinary approach to this new method in surgical therapy. It skillfully combines experiments in basic cryobiology with practical, clinical cryosurgery. The first half of the book deals with some basic, fundamental aspects of cryosurgery. The role of ice crystal formation inside the cell, the effect of freezing and thawing on enzyme function, cell metabolism, and membrane permeability are discussed in detail.
There are only two brief chapters dealing with ocular cryosurgery; cryoextraction of cataracts, and the use of freezing in the treatment of ocular tumors is discussed. However, in spite of this paucity of information on ophthalmic cryosurgery, the book is of considerable interest to any ophthalmologist who wants to understand the mechanism of action of this new surgical technique.