 The publication of his 1978 book, Histologic Diagnosis of Inflammatory Skin Diseases was a landmark both in Ackerman's career and for the profile of dermatopathology.It is one of the few medical texts that looks like a coffee table art book.It introduced the concept of pattern diagnosis- the examination of a slide at scanning magnification and analysis of the silhouette of lesion rather than of its cells to a large audience.