Brunner and Suddarth’s Textbook of Medical-Surgical Nursing, 15th edition (Hinkle, Cheever and Overbaugh; Wolters Kluwer), arranges 68 chapters in 16 units, moving from nursing principles and patient-management concepts to the body systems. It’s easiest to study one unit at a time, with a chapter self-quiz after each reading. Below: a unit map, the 14th-to-15th changes, where the 2025 16th edition fits, and a 15-week plan.
Key takeaways
- The 15th-edition single volume is ISBN 9781975161033 (published September 2021, dated 2022 in library catalogs); the two-volume set is 9781975168285.
- The 15th has 68 chapters in 16 units, down from 73 chapters in 17 units in the 14th edition (2018).
- Separate therapeutic-modality chapters were folded into the disease chapters, and a new chapter covers patients who are LGBTQ.
- The 16th edition (October 2025, ISBN 9781975221133) splits lower-respiratory disorders in two, so 15th-edition chapters from 20 onward move up by one.
- The 2026 NCLEX-RN includes three clinical judgment case studies of six items, one per step of NCSBN’s Clinical Judgment Measurement Model.
About Brunner and Suddarth’s Textbook of Medical-Surgical Nursing
Brunner & Suddarth’s is Wolters Kluwer’s adult-health textbook for RN med-surg courses, and its 15th-edition page says instructors, students and practicing nurses have trusted it for nearly 60 years. Students shorten the title to Brunner and Suddarth medical-surgical nursing, or just Brunner med-surg.
The lead authors today are Janice L. Hinkle and Kerry H. Cheever, which is why students also search for Hinkle and Cheever. Kristen J. Overbaugh joined them as an editor for the 15th edition, and Carolyn E. Bradley joins them on the 16th.
Brunner and Suddarth editions and ISBNs
Confirm your edition by the ISBN-13 on the copyright page, not the cover or a seller’s title.
| Edition | ISBN-13 | Chapters, units |
|---|---|---|
| 14th (2018) | 9781496347992 | 73, 17 |
| 15th (2021, ©2022) | 9781975161033 | 68, 16 |
| 15th, 2-volume set (2022) | 9781975168285 | 68, 16 |
| 16th (2025) | 9781975221133 | 69, 16 |
Our guide on how to find the ISBN of a book shows where to look in print and eBook copies.
Print and digital formats
The 15th edition came as a single-volume hardcover, a two-volume set and a VitalSource eBook, all the same edition, so a 15th-edition study aid fits each. Wolters Kluwer pairs the book with Lippincott CoursePoint+ and lists over 1,800 NCLEX-style review questions on thePoint, its companion site.
Brunner and Suddarth’s Textbook of Medical-Surgical Nursing: 15th vs 14th Edition
The 15th edition is a consolidation: 73 chapters became 68, and 17 units became 16. Wolters Kluwer’s 15th-edition page lists these headline changes:
- One principles unit: the 14th edition’s two opening units became a single Unit 1, Principles of Nursing Practice.
- No modality chapters: the respiratory, musculoskeletal and digestive treatment-modality chapters were folded into the condition chapters.
- New content: chapter 54 on patients who are LGBTQ, plus Veterans and COVID-19 Considerations sections.
- New features: QSEN-focused case studies in every unit opener and Critical Thinking Exercises with prioritization questions.
- Revised units: respiratory, digestive and gastrointestinal, and musculoskeletal.
The contents lists show smaller moves too. Standalone 14th-edition chapters on community-based practice, transcultural nursing and rehabilitation are gone, shock gained sepsis in its title, and diabetes now follows the endocrine chapter.
Where the 16th edition fits
The 16th edition (October 14, 2025) keeps the same 16 units but has 69 chapters. The 15th’s chest and lower respiratory chapter is split into acute disorders (chapter 19) and non-acute disorders (chapter 20), pushing every later chapter up by one. Wolters Kluwer says it has over 300 fewer pages than the 15th and lists updated Clinical Judgment Alerts, plus Clinical Judgment Exercises aligned with NCSBN’s model.
Our Brunner test banks match the 15th and earlier editions, not the 16th. If your syllabus lists the 16th, use our textbook request page rather than assuming 15th-edition material lines up.
Unit Structure and Chapter Map
The 15th edition opens with three concept units (principles, patient management and perioperative care), then moves system by system, usually starting with an assessment chapter.
| Unit (chapters) | Priority |
|---|---|
| 1. Principles of nursing practice (1–8) | Medium |
| 2. Patient-management concepts (9–13) | High |
| 3. Perioperative care (14–16) | High |
| 4. Respiratory (17–20) | High |
| 5. Cardiovascular (21–27) | High |
| 6. Hematologic (28–30) | Medium |
| 7. Immunologic (31–34) | Medium |
| 8. Musculoskeletal (35–37) | Medium |
| 9. Digestive and GI (38–41) | Medium |
| 10. Metabolic and endocrine (42–46) | High |
| 11. Kidney and urinary (47–49) | High |
| 12. Reproductive (50–54) | Lower |
| 13. Integumentary (55–57) | Medium |
| 14. Sensory (58–59) | Lower |
| 15. Neurologic (60–65) | High |
| 16. Acute community-based challenges (66–68) | Medium |
Two placements are easy to miss: shock and sepsis sit in Unit 2, far from the heart chapters, and the obesity and liver chapters live in the metabolic and endocrine unit.
High-Yield Brunner Chapters by Body System
Unless your syllabus says otherwise, give extra time to 15th-edition chapters 10–11, 20, 22–25, 45–46, 48 and 62, which combine dense physiology, drug classes and priority decisions. NCSBN’s 2026 NCLEX-RN test plan points the same way: 11–17% of items cover Physiological Adaptation, 9–15% Reduction of Risk Potential and 13–19% Pharmacological and Parenteral Therapies.
Fluids, shock and perioperative care (ch. 10–16)
Quiz yourself on chapter 10 twice, a week apart; fluid reasoning returns in the kidney, endocrine and burn chapters. Link chapter 11 (shock and sepsis) to the perfusion content in Unit 5, and draw chapters 14–16 as one timeline from preoperative checks to postoperative complications.
Respiratory and cardiovascular (ch. 17–27)
Read assessment chapters 17 and 21 first, since priority questions often turn on a change from baseline. Then build one table per unit: a row per condition, columns for key cues, diagnostics, drug classes and what to report. Practice arrhythmias (chapter 22) in short daily sets.
Endocrine, kidney and neurologic (ch. 45–49, 60–65)
Start Unit 10 with chapter 46 (diabetes), which mixes long-term teaching with acute emergencies, and study chapter 45 as mirror pairs of too much versus too little hormone. For chapter 48, link each lost kidney function to the problem it causes. In Unit 15, focus on chapters 61–63 and early signs of deterioration.
Lab ranges and drug parameters vary by laboratory and program. Follow your program’s textbook and your instructor’s reference ranges, not a number you found online.
Using Brunner’s Clinical Judgment and Concept Features
Treat each feature as a retrieval prompt: answer first, then read the book’s answer. NCSBN’s clinical judgment model has six steps (recognize cues, analyze cues, prioritize hypotheses, generate solutions, take action, evaluate outcomes), and each NCLEX-RN case study is six items about one client.
| Feature | Step | How to use it |
|---|---|---|
| Assessment and risk-factor charts | Recognize cues | Flashcards: condition front, cues back |
| Pathophysiology figures | Analyze cues | Redraw from memory, linking cues to causes |
| Critical Thinking Exercises | Prioritize hypotheses | Rank the problems before reading on |
| Plans of Nursing Care | Generate solutions | Cover the interventions; write your own |
| Quality and Safety Nursing Alerts | Take action | Keep a one-line safety list |
| Unfolding Patient Stories | Evaluate outcomes | Compare each update with your goals |
Concept Mastery Alerts draw on misconception data from Wolters Kluwer’s PrepU quizzing, so log any alert you’d have gotten wrong.
A worked example: heart failure
Here’s the routine applied to an illustrative heart-failure patient from the cardiovascular unit (chapters 21–27).
- Recognize cues. An older adult with heart failure woke short of breath after lying down and has more ankle swelling, weight gain over two days and crackles. MedlinePlus lists each as a heart failure sign or symptom.
- Analyze cues. Together they suggest fluid buildup; MedlinePlus notes that weight gain and leg swelling over a few days can mean heart failure is getting worse.
- Prioritize hypotheses. Fluid in the lungs threatens breathing, so it outranks the swelling.
- Generate solutions. Write target outcomes (easier breathing, clearer lungs, falling weight) and interventions, then check them against the chapter’s nursing-process section.
- Take action. Choose the first action that supports breathing.
- Evaluate outcomes. Recheck breathing, lung sounds and weight against step 4.
This is a study illustration, not clinical guidance. Follow your program’s textbook, your instructor and facility policy.
A Semester Study Plan for Brunner & Suddarth
Read three to six chapters a week, self-quiz on each within two days, and take a cumulative mixed quiz in weeks 5, 10 and 15. The plan covers all 68 chapters of the Brunner and Suddarth 15th edition. If your program splits med-surg or skips units, keep the order and drop the rest.
Weekly reading
| Week | Chapters | Focus |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1–5 | Practice, teaching, assessment |
| 2 | 6–10 | Genetics, older adults, pain, fluids |
| 3 | 11–16 | Shock, cancer, palliative care, periop |
| 4 | 17–20 | Respiratory |
| 5 | 21–24 | Heart, arrhythmias + mixed quiz |
| 6 | 25–27 | Heart complications, vascular, BP |
| 7 | 28–31 | Blood, immune assessment |
| 8 | 32–37 | Immune, musculoskeletal |
| 9 | 38–41 | Digestive and GI |
| 10 | 42–46 | Liver, endocrine, diabetes + mixed quiz |
| 11 | 47–49 | Kidney and urinary |
| 12 | 50–54 | Reproductive, LGBTQ care |
| 13 | 55–59 | Skin, burns, eyes, ears |
| 14 | 60–65 | Neurologic |
| 15 | 66–68 | Infection, emergency + final quiz |
Chapter self-quizzes
- Within 48 hours, answer 15–25 questions on the chapter without notes, and read every rationale.
- Log each miss in one line: the topic, why the right answer is right and why yours wasn’t.
- At the weekend, re-quiz only the logged topics, mixed together.
Our med-surg nursing study guide adds a disease-by-disease routine you can reuse in every unit.
Review weeks
In weeks 5, 10 and 15, swap one reading session for a mixed quiz from every chapter so far, weighted toward your miss log. Mixing units makes you name the problem before solving it.
A test bank can supply chapter-matched quiz questions: it’s a self-assessment aid with rationales, not your instructor’s exam. Publishers write test banks mainly for instructors and some programs restrict them, so check your honor code and ask your instructor. If your program prohibits them, don’t use one.
These match earlier editions, not the 2025 16th, so check your syllabus first.
- Brunner & Suddarth’s 15th edition test bank — for courses on the 15th edition (9781975161033) or its two-volume set.
- Brunner & Suddarth’s 14th edition test bank (Hinkle & Cheever) — for the 2018 edition (9781496347992) and its 73-chapter numbering.
- Brunner and Suddarth’s 13th edition test bank (Hinkle) — for courses still assigned the 13th edition.
Each test bank is matched to one edition and ISBN-13. Check the number on your book before you buy.
Brunner vs Lewis: Which Med-Surg Book Is Your Course Using?
Your syllabus decides. Check the ISBN, or the courseware: a Lippincott CoursePoint+ access code means a Wolters Kluwer book such as Brunner. Both cover the same adult-health scope and differ mainly in structure and length.
| Feature | Brunner | Lewis |
|---|---|---|
| Publisher | Wolters Kluwer | Elsevier |
| Current edition | 16th (2025) | 13th (2026) |
| Hardcover pages | 2,150 | 1,792 |
| Structure | 69 chapters, 16 units | 69 chapters, 12 sections |
| Organized by | Concept units, then body systems | Clinical problem areas |
The Lewis 13th edition splits oxygenation into ventilation, transport and perfusion sections, and Elsevier calls its style conversational. For mixed study groups, this cross-reference helps:
| Topic | Brunner 15th | Lewis 13th |
|---|---|---|
| Fluids and electrolytes | 10 | 17 |
| Shock and sepsis | 11 | 42 |
| Perioperative care | 14–16 | 18–20 |
| Chronic lung disease | 20 | 31 |
| Diabetes | 46 | 53 |
| Kidney disease | 48 | 51 |
| Stroke | 62 | 62 |
| Emergency and disaster | 67–68 | 21 |
Using Lewis? Our Lewis medical-surgical nursing guide maps its sections, and our med-surg nursing textbooks comparison adds Ignatavicius. Once you know your edition, browse our medical-surgical test banks or the wider nursing test banks catalog.
Frequently asked questions
What is the newest edition of Brunner and Suddarth?
The 16th edition. Wolters Kluwer lists the hardcover (ISBN 9781975221133) with an October 14, 2025 publication date, by Hinkle, Cheever, Overbaugh and Bradley, and it has 69 chapters in 16 units. Programs adopt new editions on their own timetable, so the 15th may still be the one on your syllabus.
Who are Hinkle and Cheever?
Janice L. Hinkle, PhD, RN, CNRN, and Kerry H. Cheever, PhD, RN, are the current lead authors. Wolters Kluwer’s 15th-edition page lists Cheever as professor and chairperson of the Department of Nursing at Moravian College in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. They led the 14th edition and edited the 15th with Kristen J. Overbaugh.
Is Brunner and Suddarth harder than Lewis?
Neither is objectively harder; your instructor’s exams decide that. Brunner is longer: Wolters Kluwer lists the 16th-edition hardcover at 2,150 pages, and Elsevier lists Lewis’s 13th at 1,792. Brunner leans on charts and tables, while Elsevier calls Lewis conversational. Study the book your course assigns.
Can I use the 14th edition for a 15th edition course?
Ask your instructor first. The 14th has 73 chapters in 17 units and the 15th has 68 in 16, so most chapter numbers differ: diabetes is chapter 51 in the 14th and 46 in the 15th. If you use the 14th anyway, pair it with 14th-edition study aids.
Is Brunner good for NCLEX review?
It builds the adult-health knowledge the NCLEX-RN draws on, and Wolters Kluwer lists over 1,800 NCLEX-style review questions on thePoint for the 15th edition. But it’s a course textbook, not a licensing review book. The NCLEX-RN runs 85 to 150 items in up to five hours across all client-needs categories, so add a dedicated review resource before the exam.
Bottom line: start with your ISBN
Find the ISBN-13 on your copyright page and match it to the edition table before you buy anything or follow a chapter number. If it’s the 15th, put week 1 in your calendar now: read chapters 1–5 and quiz yourself on each within two days. Book your first mixed quiz for week 5 so it actually happens.
Sources & further reading
- Wolters Kluwer — Brunner & Suddarth’s, 15th Edition (archived product page)
- Wolters Kluwer — Brunner & Suddarth’s, 16th Edition
- Dow University of Health Sciences Library — Catalog record: Brunner & Suddarth’s, 14th edition
- East Carolina University Libraries — Catalog record: Brunner & Suddarth’s, 15th edition (2-volume set)
- NCSBN — 2026 NCLEX-RN Test Plan (PDF)
- Elsevier — Lewis’s Medical-Surgical Nursing, 13th Edition
- MedlinePlus — Heart failure
