The book has 9,000+ citations. It utilizes the WHO's International classification of Diseases for the section on diseases and disorders and the U.S. Food & Drug Administration's Product Code Classification Database for the section on medical devices, equipment, and instruments. It includes detailed subject, geographuc, and people indexes for an easy reference.
Dale A. Stirling is a historian who, over a four-decade period, has worked on environmental, natural resource, and public health matters. Concurrently, he has been an independent bibliographer, abstractor, and indexer and has published numerous journal articles and reference books on topics ranging from environmental assessments to historical maps to toxicology. Stirling earned his Bachelor's in history from the University of Alaska Anchorage, USA, and his Master’s in liberal arts from the Alaska Pacific University, USA. He currently resides near the town of Coupeville on Whidbey Island in Washington State, USA.