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Post by Betsy on Sept 19, 2005 20:03:27 GMT -5
Feel free to elaborate below regarding your preparation for the Internal Medicine shelf. Here is a thread on this topic from another forum. SDN Internal Medicine Shelf Thread
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Post by giannucci on Mar 5, 2006 15:30:59 GMT -5
This exam is challenging. I was more pressed for time on this exam vs. previous Shelf exams and as usual they give you a TON of superfluous information in the question stem. This test seemed to have a little more pathophysiology on it than other shelf exams and otherwise is just what you would expect. I don't remember there being any questions that involved math...other than anion gap so I wouldn't bother memorizing equations...other than that it is a general exam, so the depth didn't seem to be too terrible (ie don't worry about memorizing EKGs), although it would be helpful to know indications for different testing modalities... the usual what step is next type of thing. I used MKSAP and First Aid which were both okay. The format of questions in MKSAP seems to be a little unshelf like (lots of all of the above type questions) but the information they point out is helpful. If you are assigned to cardiology, it is very time consuming (good learning though) so plan to study more heavily in your other month.
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Post by Betsy on Apr 28, 2006 18:17:02 GMT -5
I agree with what Glenn said. The vignettes are incredibly long, and have alot of crap thrown in. Just make sure you stay on track, because time flies by on this one. I dont think there was many people at all in my group that left before it was over (compared to previous shelfs). Also, I agree with the calculations statement too. I really dont think I had any acid base, and didnt need to calculate any anion gaps. There was maybe 1 EKG, and you really didnt need to read it to answer the question (enough info was given in the vignette). They just came out with a MKSAP 3 last month, and I used that mostly. It was alright. Its just like any other question book, but I definately think its the best one for medicine (I used a little of pre-test, and stopped because I felt MKSAP was much better). I think I would invest in getting the newer edition of MKSAP, because they are newer questions (I believe these are old questions from shelf exams, from my understanding). High yield information: anemias, lung cancers and paraneoplastic syndromes, cardiovascular (CHF, MI, cardiomyopathies), nephrology (in terms of processes like ARF, CRF, glomerulonephritis....not much acid base, if any at all), rhematology (definately know lupus and rheumatoid arthritis), GI bleeds, COPD and asthma, a few questions about HIV and diseases/prophylaxis, more than expected questions on hyponatremia, and also make sure to know your diabetes and how to manage insulin. Maybe it was just me, but I also felt like there was a few unexpected questions on critical care. I also agree that the depth wasnt as bad as it could be. And by that I mean, you just need to know alot of the basics, nothing too involved. Good luck, this one is definately easier if you have had a few rotations under your belt.
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Post by hnaggarmd on Jul 19, 2006 20:00:16 GMT -5
MKSAP is the way to go for questions. As said before, the format of the questions is different, but a lot of useful info. I felt there may have been a few questions directly out of MKSAP, especially some of the epidemiology questions. First Aid is a good review. I tried NMS for several weeks but quit a few weeks before the shelf because I didn't have enough time to read it (with all those wonderful busy work assignments).
Online quiz - do the optional quizzes and write down the answers. They will re-appear on the required online quiz. Also, keep reloading each optional quiz, there are around 5-6 questions per topic.
I may have had 1 EKG, so don't spend too much time learning them for the shelf.
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