The new edition of Human Physiology - an Oxford Core Text continues to meet the needs of preclinical medical students and is also valuable to those following undergraduate courses in physiology and other health-related disciplines. It adopts a student-friendly style with an emphasis on clarity, explanation and understanding, complemented by full-colour illustrations. The book has a hierarchical organisation, beginning with aspects of cell and tissue function before proceeding to a consideration of the communication systems of the body including the endocrine and nervous systems. The heart of the text concerns the physiology of the main body systems. This new edition has been extensively revised. There are more than 50 new figures and many others have been redrawn in the interests of clarity. The text has been thoroughly updated and expanded. New material includes: meiosis; gluconeogenesis; fatty acid metabolism; discussion of the diseases of skeletal muscle; the mechanisms of itch; a more detailed treatment of the physiology of pain and vision; colour plates of common endocrine disorders; extensive revision of the section on the microcirculation; respiratory failure and associated conditions; the discussion of the countercurrent mechanism has been expanded and free water clearance is now discussed; malabsorption disorders; a chapter on Nutrition including a brief account of deficiency disorders and the assessment of nutritional status; the treatment of the physiology of bone has been expanded and now includes a brief account of bone healing after a fracture; the Clinical Physiology chapter now includes a brief account of the normal physiological changes that occur during life. Finally, the discussion of reproductive physiology has been extensively reorganized, revised and expanded to include more detail of maternal physiology.