This title arouses interest, and immediately brings to mind the aphorism “when you hear hoof beats, think of horses, not zebras.” Indeed, the preface begins with just that advice. However, a dip into the book soon reveals that this is a mixed collection of conditions under the broad heading of “uncommon.” Of course, uncommon depends on one’s field—within any sports medicine practice, such conditions as supraspinatus tendinitis (sic), iliotibial band friction, and talofibular pain are very much everyday horses. However, omohyoid syndrome, Parsonage-Turner syndrome, quadriceps expansion syndrome, and many others are more intriguing.

The text is arranged regionally, with 71 conditions dealt with in individual chapters, with accompanying illustrations. The term syndrome is loosely applied to a variety of causes of pain of predominantly musculoskeletal …