Human physiology is rarely the kind of book students truly finish once. The course may end, but the underlying material often returns in anatomy, pathophysiology, pharmacology, exercise science, and clinical reasoning. That makes the decision around ISBN 9780135314456 more consequential than a simple first-price comparison. Students are often choosing not just a format, but how much future access they want to keep.

If you only need the buying answer

The cheapest short-term route is 180-day digital at about $59.94, followed by semester rental at $84.99. The current new print listing is $114.99, which is lower than the used market at $174.99 but still above both temporary routes. That makes this a split case: digital or rental are better for short-term savings, while print only makes sense if you want a keepable physiology reference.

Price comparison

Store	Format	Condition	Price	Link
Merybook	Paperback	New	$114.99	Check price
eTextbook	Digital	180 days	$59.94	Check digital option
eTextbook	Digital	1825 days	$113.99	Check digital option
Rental	Semester rental	Temporary	$84.99	Check rental option
eCampus	Hardcover	Used	$174.99	Check used market

What this price means in practice

This is not a print-cheapest case. Short-term digital is clearly cheaper, and even long-term digital is almost exactly tied with the current print listing. That means the print decision only becomes strong if you know you want a physical physiology reference to keep.

For many health-science students, that can still be reasonable, because physiology tends to reappear in later study. But the honest short-term value answer is digital, not print.

What this book actually teaches

Human Physiology: An Integrated Approach is built to explain how systems interact rather than treating the body as disconnected chapters. That integration is exactly what makes physiology difficult at first and valuable later. Students often return to the book when later coursework assumes they still understand the logic linking systems together.

That is why the book can justify ownership in some programs. It is not because print is cheapest. It is because the content itself often remains useful beyond the original course.

Who should choose digital, and who might still buy print

Choose digital or rental if cost matters most and you only need the book for one physiology course.

Choose print only if you know you want a retained physiology reference for longer health-science study and are comfortable paying more for ownership.

Sources checked

Sources checked: Merybook listing search for ISBN 9780135314456, eCampus used and rental pricing, and sampled 180-day and 1825-day digital pricing. Pricing reviewed April 19, 2026.