SAN ANTONIO -- A San Antonio doctor has launched a new textbook for surgeons that is groundbreaking in the field. It’s an electronic text that comes alive with interactive video and graphics along with words and drawings.

At his Hill Country ranch in Kerr County, Stephen Burkhart lives the cowboy life. In the operating room at the San Antonio Orthopaedic Group, Dr. Stephen Burkhart employs his cowboy philosophy.

The renowned shoulder surgeon says his version of being a cowboy isn’t about being reckless.

“They did the right thing,” Burkhart said of cowboys. “Whether it was easy or whether it took a long time, they did the right thing. And to my way of thinking, the right thing was to do the shoulder surgery, big operations even, arthroscopically.”

Burkhart’s second textbook, The Cowboy’s Companion, is 28 chapters of precise directions on all things shoulder. It features 1500 high resolution photos and seven hours of video.

As a nod to his roots, cowboy quotes are featured at the beginning of each section, like “don’t build the gate until you’ve built the corral.”

“Young surgeons in practice, they’re not reading paper journals anymore,” Burkhart noted. “They’re reading it off their iPod or their iPad. And so much of what we do arthroscopically is based on video that it just made sense to do it that way.”

Burkhart performs several hundred minimally invasive procedures a year. He expects other specialists will learn from his success.

“So I think it’s really good for surgeons at all levels,” he added.

Burkhart launched his new textbook at a meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons in San Francisco last week. Each copy sells for $275.