FAQ #21: What Books Do You Use for the Clinical Threads?

I already posted the books we use for the summer block, but here is a list of books for the clinical threads in Year 1. The threads include anatomy, biochemistry, cell biology, embryology, genetics, histology, pharmacology, and physiology. There are also two books that you need for physical diagnosis and communication skills. You will use these books all year long, some of them over the summer as well. There is another list of books for the individual organ blocks that you will mainly only use while you study that organ system. I'll post the list of those next week, because I don't want this entry to get too long.

Anatomy: We use Dr. Drake's own book, which is called Anatomy for Students. It comes with online anatomy and embryology modules also. Apparently some people mainly use the modules and don't really read the text, but I do just the opposite. I've just never really gotten into the modules. I recommend buying the book, because you'll probably need it to do the SAQs. I also got a copy of Netter's Atlas of Human Anatomy, which is not required. You could definitely do without having an atlas, but I like looking through there every now and then. Dr. Drake is apparently going to be putting out his own atlas by the time you guys will be starting. So if you want to buy an atlas, you might want to take a look at his too before deciding which one to buy.

Biochemistry: See my previous post on summer books.

Cell and Molecular Biology: See my previous post on summer books.

Embryology: Our recommended text is Langman's Medical Embryology by Sadler. I bought it and feel that it was worth buying, but a lot of people just use the online embryology modules that come with Dr. Drake's book. If you like using the modules, you don't need to buy this book.

Genetics: See my previous post on summer books.

Histology: We use Kierszenbaum's Histology and Cell Biology along with Gartner's Color Atlas of Histology. I don't love the Kierszenbaum book, but it's ok. I think you could use a different histology book instead and it might be easier to read. The histo atlas is a good book, and it comes with a DVD showing slides along with practice USMLE questions. I recommend buying that one. I've also done some looking around the SIU histology website, which is really good.

Pharmacology: We use Katzung's Basic and Clinical Pharmacology. You don't have to buy this if you don't want to because it's available on line through the CCF library. You can print out the chapters or just read them on the computer. I did decide to buy it though because I hate reading books on line, and I'm very interested in pharmacology. Most people in my class, including me, bought Lippincott's Pharmacology by Howland and Mycek. It's good because there are short chapters in there (10-15 pages tops) about each of the drug classes, and it's helpful to read those as you go through your PBL cases so that you understand what drugs are being given to the patients and why. I would recommend that you definitely buy the Lippincott book.

Physiology: The school recommends that you buy Medical Physiology by Boron and Boulpaep. This book is very detailed, and if you've never studied physiology like many of us hadn't, you might want to also consider buying Costanzo's Physiology. Definitely buy the Boron book to use as a resource though, because some of the explanations in Costanzo are not detailed enough for answering SAQs and CAPPs. If you're going to buy Costanzo too, then I recommend buying it early, and read Chapter 1 on cellular physiology over the summer. Make sure you get the Costanzo physio textbook, not the board review book that she also wrote. Once you start the clinical blocks, read the appropriate Costanzo chapter first before attempting to read Boron. If you're coming in already having a strong physiology background, you probably don't need Costanzo.

Physical Diagnosis and Communication Skills: This is not really a thread. It's actually considered to be a block that you take all year long and all next year too. But it functions more like a thread in practice, so I'm including it here. There are two books that you need. One is Cole's The Medical Interview: The Three Functions Approach. To say that this book is pointless is an understatement, but you should probably still get a copy because they assign a lot of the communications readings to us from there. The other book we use is Schwartz's Textbook of Physical Diagnosis: History and Examination. This book is pretty good, and again, you really need to get it because you'll be assigned readings from it each week. One nice thing about the Schwartz book is that it comes with a DVD, and you can see the physical exams being given so that you aren't coming to class or going to the clinic totally cold.