Abstract: At present many medical schools offer medical English translation courses for students. Many types of medical English translation textbooks have been published in China in the past two decades. However, little research has been done on those books. By reviewing 39 medical English translation textbooks published in China from 2000 to 2020, some problems have been found: few innovative pedagogical approaches have been adopted, book contents cannot meet the needs of different readers, little attention has been paid to the construction of systematic medical translation theory, and some indispensable ancillary instructional materials are not available. To improve the quality of medical translation textbooks, the recommendations are as follows:The book compilers should incorporate cutting edge research into book compiling, study the needs of the readers, attach importance to the construction of medical translation theory, and the teaching materials in the textbook should be more comprehensive.

Key words: Medical English translation, Translation textbook, Research status