Cover of Complications

Book · 2002 · Surgery

Complications

by Atul Gawande · Recommended by 2 people on 2 podcasts

mentions
2
people
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podcasts
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episodes
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recommendations
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His other books are Complications, A Surgeon's Notes on an Imperfect Science, and Better, A Surgeon's Notes on Performance, and the book for which he's best known, Being Mortal, which wrestles with decline and death.
Stephen Dubner · Freakonomics Radio · Apr 2018

The best things said about it

1 of 2 · every mention
Discussed
I wrote about a case in my first book, Complications. I came back again and better.
Atul Gawande How I Write · Nov 2025

Why people recommend it

Complications: A Surgeon's Notes on an Imperfect Science by Atul Gawande is a foundational collection of essays exploring the uncertainties, ethical dilemmas, and everyday realities of medical practice. The author himself brought up the work on How I Write, mentioning that he previously explored a specific medical case in this, his very first book, before returning to related themes with greater depth in later writing. On Freakonomics Radio, Stephen Dubner discussed Complications while introducing the author's broader literary portfolio to the audience. Dubner noted that Gawande has penned several acclaimed titles, listing Complications alongside other works like Better: A Surgeon's Notes on Performance and the widely recognized Being Mortal, which focuses heavily on human decline and end-of-life care. Together, these podcast segments situated Complications as both a milestone in Gawande's personal writing career and a notable contribution to popular medical literature that investigates the inherent limitations and human vulnerabilities of modern surgical science.

Every mention

2 counted mentions
Atul Gawande I wrote about a case in my first book, Complications. I came back again and better. 1
Discussed
“I wrote about a case in my first book, Complications. I came back again and better.”
Stephen Dubner His other books are Complications, A Surgeon's Notes on an Imperfect Science, and Better, A Surgeon's Notes… 1
Discussed
“His other books are Complications, A Surgeon's Notes on an Imperfect Science, and Better, A Surgeon's Notes on Performance, and the book for which he's best known, Being Mortal, which wrestles with decline and death.”

Also mentioned in the same episodes

Portraits from Wikimedia Commons: Stephen Dubner, Audrey S. Bernstein / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0).