Pharmacology

Pharmcards: Review Cards for Medical Students

•  "My hesitation with these was not the amount, but the cost.  So, before I purchased them I went our school bookstore where they have an open copy to look through.  The price totally sucks, but besides First Aid & qbank, this was my next most useful resource.  The beginning handful of cards has schematic overviews of how to tx common diagnoses...very helpful in getting the big picture.  Plus they highlight the important stuff in bold."

• "Now that I am in 3rd year, I actually use these a lot for the wards.  I keep a handful of relevant cards in my coat pocket & review them as I can." 
• "Yes, there is a lot of them, but its worth it.  I matched what First Aid said we needed w/ the pharmcards."  Totally worth it."
• "I went back and forth on getting these for a while.  There is excess, but it helps me understand the concept better than the "listing" of drugs in other resources."

Katzung & Trevor's Pharmacology Examination and Board Review

• “I only used this one and I am quite satisfied with the process. No pharma questions got me by surprise in the actual exam (but they were so few!). The tables, and the "Key Drugs" section at the end were pure gold to me.”
• "The chapters are more lined up with the way my pharmacology class is set up, and it (briefly) includes lower-yield topics covered on my exams but not heavily emphasized on the Step 1. These topics are readily identifiable, however. The book itself includes an alphabetical listing of the 200 or so most tested drugs on Step 1, along with a brief description of the mechanism of action, toxicity, and the corresponding chapter or chapters that discuss this drug. Within each chapter, key drugs are listed in table format. Lippincott's seems less organized, and each chapter is organized differently than the next, making it more difficult to orient yourself when moving on to subsequent chapters."
• "Great review book. Especially if using for the boards. It has good information, just enough detail and it doesn't drag. It also has fantastic questions at the end to test yourself."

Lippincott's Illustrated Reviews: Pharmacology

• "I used this text to prepare for the boards, having already read Katzung's Pharmacology in class. This is a concise book, uniform, with many illustrations (many of them however could easily be omitted, since they simply present drug adverse effects graphically)."
• "Please be advised that though you may find the illustrations helpful and entertaining, some of descriptive pharmacology contains fatal errors. For example, on page 119:
  "Cocaine can induce seizures as well as fatal cardiac arrythmias. IV diazepam and propanolol may be required to control cocaine-induced seizures and cardiac arrythmias."
  Propanolol is CONTRAINDICATED in cocaine-induced cardiac arrythmias because of coronary artery vasoconstriction. Responsible health-care providers need to know this."
• "LIR Pharm seems to be one of those books that everyone uses in medical school. It's really not short or quick to read at over 500 pages. But the fact that the authors keep all of the chapters at about 10-15 pages makes each one a fairly easy and digestible read. As others have already said, the greatest strength of the book by far is the excellent illustrations.
  One thing about this book annoyed me a lot, and that was the huge number of typos that are present throughout."

High Yield Pharmacology

• “I was looking for a good pharm book, never found one, this one is terrible, not much more detail than First Aid.”

Pathology

LIKELY THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF THE STUDY PROCESS- BE PREPARED!!!


Goljan Rapid Review Pathology

• "Most important book- along with his audio of course- I spiral bound mine at a kinkos so it was easier to handle."
• "If you have the old edition, strongly consider upgrading. There are tons of color images and clinical correlations. I love the way Goljan integrates concepts."

• "The new edition is better- more pictures and graphs. Just finished heme and that chapter saved me for my exam!"
  
• “The audio is really good at explaining stuff, especially good were the lectures in cardio and general inflammation. The pathology book is good too, but does not hit you with the quick facts like brs does - instead goes for a broader big picture approach.”
• "I've read through BRS Pathology many times, but I decided to give RR Pathology a try after hearing all the praise. I went through half of it so far and frankly I don't like it. I find it very difficult to read mainly because of its poor structure."
• "If you did well in path - this is a good book - it gives quick reminders of everything you already know and pounds it into your brain, [but] if you need something with paragraphs, this is not the book. It is essentially a book of really good concise notes on everything in path."

Robbins and Cotran Review of Pathology

• “Used part of it earlier in the school year. Very challenging questions. Lymphoma & micro chapter are next to impossible. “
• “Robins review of path, idiopathic got me hooked on this one, after doing this twice all other path questions seem easy by comparison.”
• "This is the best question book for both path and Step I. There's a decent mix of questions based on long clinical vignettes along with shorter ones, much like Step I. Due to Step I's emphasis on pathology, I think this resource is almost just as valuable as the vaunted Kaplan Q bank (which is an inferior source for path questions but good on other subjects)."

BRS Pathology

• “Don’t use this book (except for questions) - I started using this but quit really quickly, the text is essentially all covered in First Aid.”
• "I brought this one to the gym & read it on the elliptical alot.  It isn't too bulky and it has bigger text..haha! Well, it worked for me anyhow."
• “Used it during the school year but ditched it in favor of goljan's rapid review during boards studying.”
• “ Another heaven-sent tool for med students. An imposing book, but again try to memorize all of it, as almost all will be fair game on the USMLE. Best to use early during the year.”
• “For 99% of medical students, this book is essential. BRS Pathology provides a framework that will help you better understand course lectures and materials. It helps provide the "big picture" as a great deal of path is condensed into a few pages a section, with the most important (and board relevant) details.”
• “I guess after reading Micro Made Rediculously Simple, my expectations for a review book are too high. This is just an outline w/ definitions, blah. There are very few images, and nothing to help you remember any of it. Also, I found it to be very incomplete when it came to the material covered by my pathology course.”
• “Use it at the beginning of your prep; otherwise Goljan and kaplan are better.”

Neuroanatomy & Neuroscience

BRS Neuroanatomy

• "I only had time to use this review book the weekend before the board, so I did all of the questions and then read what I needed to brush up on. There were a LOT of miskeyed answers, and then some answers were just flat out wrong."
• "BRS is usually the go-to review book among those in my class, so I naturally purchased this book to prep for the neuro NBME. When I received it, I was surprised that it was heavier than other BRS books I had. It does hit the high points, but it kind of drones with A LOT of details that could have been left out of the final book. It does do its job but could definitely be shorter."

Clinical Neuroanatomy Made Ridiculously Simple

• "Without question, this is one of the best books ever written for medical students or anyone else struggling through neurosciences. It miraculously removes the tedious details of this important topic and instead focuses on clinically relevant information in an effort to maximize understanding and minimize memorization."
• "As a medical student, I suggest that this is the first place you go to learn about neuroanatomy."

High Yield Neuroanatomy

• “Neuro was a weak point for me so I needed more, you may not need this much”
• “Neuro HY so worth the extra pages of reading. Lots of very good brain images in the beginning. First Aid is good at covering a lot of the key points though.”
• “Even though only a few questions on the exam will concern neuroanatomy or neuroscience, spending a day or two with this book is a worthwhile investment. Be sure to learn about the different types of headaches! I had about 5 questions on this subject on my actual exam!”
• “First Aid is money for most subjects, but it's weak on neuro. This book is a very good balance between too little and too much for this overwhelming subject. The High Yield series keeps improving in quality, and in the newest edition is even better at showing clinical scenarios and integrating other subjects like pathology or physiology.”
• “This is a good book for people who need to review for the boards and have a good foundation of neuroanatomy. If you don't have solid footing the lack of explanations might confuse you. On the other hand it is quite concise so it is easy to get through.”

Lange Clinical Neurology

• “I tried to go with Lange Clnical Neurology, but gave up quickly. I also tried the HY, but I couldn't "get along" with that book."
• "Not really for USMLE, more for the wards."

First Aid, Kaplan, Multi-Subject

 
First Aid

• “Pure gold for micro and anatomy from my limited experience.”
• "Its totally dry, but totally necessary.  It is the only book that really sums up everything you need to know to rock step 1- just memorize it."
• “I frankly disliked the book and for good reason too. Again, maybe if I was more able to memorize pre-digested data... Right after the test, I flipped through it trying to find the stuff in my questions, and I dare say that... No... it didn't even have half of what I needed, really. Excellent as a roadmap, maybe, but I wouldn't rely on it too much for more complex and uncommon issues that apparently are tested. Funny mnemonics though...”
• “This book is simply exceptional! Although its format is off-putting to some, it is an amazing compilation of info you need to know, and you should really strive to memorize almost the whole book. Its Anatomy, Pharmacology and Behavioral Sciences sections are especially useful, encompassing almost all of what you need to know of these subjects (especially for Pharm).”

Kaplan Medical USMLE Step 1 Qbook

• “Picky in some subjects but having detailed stats on your progress is fun. Use only as study tool, not as evaluation tool.”
• "It's an excellent book, containing about 850 high - quality questions organized by discipline into several tests 50 questions each."
• "Save $, buy old editions. I compared page for page 2006 and 2004 editions of Kaplan Medical USMLE Step 1 Qbook and was really surprised: Kaplan didn't change a single word in QBook over past 4 years. Well, I have to be completely honest: they changed 2004 for 2006 in most instances."
• "good for step 1 prep...good questions and explanations..but personally, i like First Aid Q and A better..."
• “A great practice tool, as it uses the real USMLE computer-interface. Make sure you do every question (2000+), and read all the answers (even for the questions you got right!). I personally like doing the questions in large batches towards the end of studying, rather than spreading them out over several months (you forget too much that way). Also, it is very important that you have a pen and paper with you always when you are answering these questions? Write down every fact that you didn’t know (even if you think you will learn it later on). I have close to 20 pages of legal paper inscribed with facts from Q-bank, and this is what I studied the night before the USMLE. Don’t panic! The Q-Bank questions are usually much harder than the real exam, and the real exam isn’t quite as fact-specific as the Q-Bank questions.”

Immunology

High Yield Immunology

• “Good book and you can read it in half a day; supplement with first aid and you're set.”
• "I didn't see any topics on the boards that weren't covered in the book."
• "It is INCREDIBLY nonsensical. The writing is extremely vague, and I would have to assume the only way to understand what the authors are getting at is to have already mastered the subject."
• "This book is poorly written - because of long sentences, it's extremely difficult to read and understand; don't think that that's because it deals with difficult topics - content is extremely basic (in the worst meaning of this word) and many intricacies of this beautiful subject are completely ignored; many very high yield topics for USMLE step 1 aren't even mentioned..."
• " When you are short of time and still want to score good in step 1 immunology, then go for this book. I bet you won't repent."

Histology

 
BRS Cell Biology & Histology

• "If you are a starting MS1 this is a good book to use for class as it has alot of good detail condensed in an outline format. It comes with a CD that has been quite helpful. However, when it comes to the Boards is just too big of a book for a subject that is not high yield- think about it- this book is just as big as BRS Path."
• "I felt that this was a good book to use for board review purposes. The outline format, like all the BRS books, is easy to follow and makes it easy to look up info. The end of chapter questions are the best part by allowing you to see if you really understood what you just read. It does not have the number and quality of pictures."
• "I have used many of the BRS books for class (the physio one is great!), but this one I found to be confusing and disorganized. It was not pertinent to the material covered on the USMLE or in microbio."
• "A must have. Really important and understandable facts in the light of USMLE. I'm reading some other books on this subject too, and I have inferred that this one is very good."

Embryology

BRS Embryology

• "Great, simple and to the point!"
• "Essential for both first year and for the exam.  My only complaint is it has too much information and you have to make sure you know what you need to know for step one.  Otherwise good purchase!" 

High Yield Embryology

• “I don’t know that this book benefited me that much, I think there is enough in First Aid.”
• “Has some really good pictures, especially of congenital heart defects. It wasn't nearly as miserable as I thought it would be.”
• “In retrospect, I wish I spent more time with this book. “
• “Devote at most a day to this topic, as it is barely covered on the exam.”
• “I WISH I had used this book DURING my embryology course in med school (instead of waiting to use it for just review)!”
• “I skimmed through this book for my step 1 because some of its contents not necessary or were found in other books such as high yiel histo or anatomy and first aid.good to skim through for the boards, but if u dont have time first aid is a perfect alternate.Even if you decide to use this book, dont use it alone, use it with first aid, which was what i did.”

Biostatistics

 

High Yield Biostatistics

• “Wonderful learning experience, perfect explanations. However, I only needed very basic concepts in the actual exam... like four pages of this book were enough in my case. Obviously, other people may have more difficult questions on this one, so...”
• "The chapters are short and it is easy to review each one many times to firmly plant the info into long term memory. I had no problems at all with the stats on the USMLE. This book presents exactly what you need to answer all the questions on the USMLE without having you waste a lot of time studying things you will never use."
• "Excellent and concise Step 1 review of biostatistics. The questions at the end are excellent indicators in measuring your grasp of the information. It is a book that you can hit hard for a day or two of Step 1 studying and feel confident that you know your stuff well."
 

Biochemistry

High Yield Biochemistry

• “This was even too much, but its certainly more manageable than Lippincott.”
• “High Yield Biochemistry is the perfect book for a one or two day board review. It is easy reading without the complex charts and detail needed in the first year of medical school."
• “A few unexplained parts but you can google those. Use in combination with first aid.”
• “High-Yield Biochemistry seemed almost useless to me. It could be great for people that have a stronger ability to memorize stuff, but, unfortunately, I have to understand a little before being able to learn..."
• "This text is good for one thing, the overall picture and how the biochem of lipid, carb, and AA metabolism all fits together. This book IS NOT, I REPEAT, NOT! a standalone. However, combine this book with Qbank and First Aide and you will be reasonably prepared..."

Lippincott's Illustrated Reviews: Biochemistry

• "This book is big, but AWESOME!!!!"
• "I was 'anti' this book for a bit b/c it looked way too detailed, but it turned out to be super helpful.  Great descriptions of how diseases are associated with biochem."
• “Although I used Kaplan as primary source for biochem, I must say that actually loved (Champe's) book. It's main importance was related to the visuals -- the superb pathway representations helped me grasp the subject matter better. The text is far too detailed and has loads of useless info. In fact, my test had so little "classic" biochem, that I almost regret having spent so much time with it. Genetics covered by this book, and by Kaplan Biochem, is not exactly what I came across in my exam."
• "Excellent book. Clear figures. However, this book has the same problem most medical texts have, namely that is is too long."
• "This book is too detailed for USMLE step 1 review. At times it compensates for its completeness (e.g., discussing every single step in each metabolic pathway) by highlighting the more important information, but even much of this highlighted material is unimportant."
• “One of the first books I read when I started studying was to quickly review all of this book. It is easy to bog down in this book, though. Biochemistry isn't a huge topic on the Boards, so the Biochem reviewed in First-Aid is in many cases enough. Be sure to know all the diseases that occur when various lipid products accumulate (Hurler's, Hunter's, Tay-Sachs, etc.).”

Behavioral Sciences

 

BRS Behavioral Science

• “Covers the ethical questions well.”
• "This book is not a bad study guide. it has a lot of MCQs to help your review. personally, i preferred the rapid review behavioral science."
• “Truthfully, I didn’t use this (I had the Kaplan Behavioral Sciences notes from my job), but its a great resource for a field that is often overlooked, but comprises a surprising proportion of questions on the USMLE. About 10% of the exam is Behavioral Sciences!”
• "Diagrams are very well done, and it would be worth it to have this book for these alone. However, this book isn't the perfect reference. It is a little long for a review before the boards, especially since this is a low yield topic. Though I highly recommend using it during class."

 High Yield Behavioral Science

• “Quick read, nicely written. Not sure it adds too much over First Aid, but it shouldn't take too long anyway. First Aid does a good job, but these questions are easy freebies if you know it, so the extra pages are probably worth it.”
• “Great for most part, but almost zero when it comes to patient-doctor relationship and ethics. I felt totally unequipped for the behavioral questions in the actual exam. No clue as to what I should have used instead...”
• “This is a great book as a quick review and by using this book as your sole review source you could probably answer many questions of the test, but dont expect to ace it! This book is good (but not great) on many chapters specially on developement and psychopathology (enough to get the big clinical picture), but it is very weak on biostats.”
• “The book was too "wordy". It used a lot of words to say the same thing over and over, to perhaps fill pages for a publisher.”
• “If you are not into the Kaplan format or don't have time this is the book for you. The chapter are short and to the point. You can maximize your Board score by looking at the chapters in Biostats (guaranteed to ghave at least 2 questions per block on this subject). Look into it and if you need a bit more details I suggest either the Goljan High Yield Notes or Kaplan Behavioral Sciences.”

Anatomy

 
BRS Anatomy

• "I really think highly of most of the books in the BRS series. This book was an exception. I even thought BRS pharmacology was pretty good despite others having mixed feelings about it. This book is by far the WORST in the BRS series."
• "Compared to the other BRS books that I have read, the Gross Anatomy one is way too dense."
  
• "This is an amazing book. It's easy to understand and contains nothing but relevant information. Wonderful for the USMLE. This book is considered "the Bible" for many medical students."
• "Awesome for the course, not as good for USMLE."
• Very, very long. I used it a lot for class, but as I am studying now for usmle, I cannot imagine all these details are necessary."

High Yield Gross Anatomy

• "I read this book for prep for usmle 1...read the clinical scenarios they will prove more useful than memorizing wat nerve innervates wat....overall...useless book for boards...FA covered about 80-90% Of the anatomy questions...this book is overkill..."
• “Covers what is missing in First Aid”
• “Thought I could do it but made me way too miserable. I stuck with First Aid and qbank only.”
• "This is great for Step I. First Aid, which is overall an outstanding review, is weak on anatomy and neuro; this book fills in the gaps."
• “Useful if you have the time, but anatomy questions make up a small portion of the exam (be sure you know the innervation of the hand, though!). Perhaps a better resource would be to just read the Blue boxes throughout Moore Clinical Anatomy.”
• “Flipped through it. Nothing relevant to say.”