Surgery COMAT

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ms8

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Hi guys,
I wanted to know what you guys have used to study and pass the surgery COMAT. I failed the exam the first time I took it. I studied from First Aid for Surgery, NMS casebook and some Uworld questions and I seriously don't understand what went wrong. Do the questions repeat when you retake the exam? Any tips on what I should study. I really need to pass this time.
Thanks

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Hey! First--Sorry to hear about the test...but no worries, you'll get it the next time around! Also, the NBOME always has some odd questions that probably have no right answer (or if they do, nobody knows it), they just want to make you sweat.
Anyway, I took the Surgery COMAT last November and here is my tips: They take/make most of their questions off a book called "Essentials of General Surgery" by Lawrence....I read this book front to back (you can skip the first 2 chapters about what to expect on your surgery rotation/tips). It's a lot of reading (300 + pages), but I can remember many questions and almost all can be traced back to somewhere in that book. My main focus was on the GI, Hepato/Biliary and Hernias as that was definitely >60% of my test. Other than that, some Step 2 boards books have Surgery sections, so I browsed through them to get a feel for the "most common", as you'll get many Q's right just knowing that.
So, even though that book is a lot of reading, I felt all of the indications for surgery, different procedures, most likely diagnosis, etc. were found in my reading.
Good luck on your studies and when you take it next time around! :luck: Let me know if you have any more Q's!
 
hey, thanks a lot for your help. Someone else also suggested Lawrence to me today. I will definitely try it. Are there any practice questions in that book?
 
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hey, thanks a lot for your help. Someone else also suggested Lawrence to me today. I will definitely try it. Are there any practice questions in that book?


Unfortunately there is no practice questions in the book. Also, practicing for COMAT/COMLEX tests is always tricky! They tend to ask some random questions, and they often don't give you much details to go off (unlike UWorld/USMLE questions). I used Step 2 Secrets (it's in a Q and A format), I did the 15 practice questions on the NBOME site Here then I focused on the big topic areas based off the blueprint...don't get bogged down in a lot of the details. Focus on high yield, most common's (Dx, Tx, Presentation) and that will literally be 60%+ of the test. Other than that, as I read Lawrence, I wrote down "facts" of details that I thought would be tested. For example: knowing 1. How a Carcinoid Tumor presents and 2. What Tx you do (Wedge resection, Hemicolectomy, Total Colectomy, etc)-you do a R. Hemicolectomy fyi.;) So after I had read the book I had a nice summary on a few pages, with high yield topics (just with the Dz, how it presents, how to Dx it, how to Tx it). That was more than enough for me.
Anyway, sorry for the rambling. I hope some of it helped! Let me know if you have any other questions!
 
Did anyone use Kaplan Qbank? I thought about using Uworld but Id also like to save it boards prep (USMLE).
 
I used kaplan. It is helpful, but not as good as uword.
 
UWorld was helpful for me, but really only for the trauma and burn questions.
 
I used the Kaplan Pestana surgery book (for step 2) and surg questions from UW, Comquest and Combank and got an 86. Any material by Pestana (review notes, etc) is golden.

Reading Lawrence is (to me) like reading Robbins for Step 1 - too big, too dense, and not necessary. There are more efficient and manageable resources around.

PS: Comquest and Combank are the secret sauce for COMATs. Remember, these tests are comprised of "retired" COMLEX Step 2 questions...so to do well, you have to get some experience with the COMLEX's asinine question style, preferences, and predilection for asking about totally random and obscure material. Once you get a feel for this by doing lots and lots of questions in the same style, the COMATs get a lot easier.
 
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beware thinking of COMAT as retired COMLEX step 2 questions. IT IS NOT true for the majority of them!
 
Then why am I seeing a blizzard of repeats from Combank/Comquest on the COMATs?
 
I have 1 week until my Surgery COMAT.

So far I am using Case Files, UW, and Combank. Would it be worth it to listen to the Pestana audio or is it not worth my time at this point?

Thank you!
 
I have searched heaven and hell on line for the Pestana audio could someone please send them to me I would sincerely appreciate i.
 
I'd been using mainly UWorld for COMAT exam prep. I honored OB and Peds pretty easily that way. But it was a huge letdown for Surgery, and I barely passed.
 
I read Surgery PreTest 3 times over a 5 week period. I ended up with a 70% which is pretty typical for me. Most of my other rotations I only read pretest 2x and also got 70ish as well... so I do think it was more difficult.

I have typically been a below average medical student so I think that if it worked for me... most people would probably do even better with my method.

For me... just reading textbooks tends to be a waste of time and energy.
 
I first read the surgery and GI chapters in Master the Boards (review book) and USMLE Secrets. I started Case Files, but felt that I did not have enough time to complete it so I just did all UWorld and Comquest questions which is doable in approx 8 hours. I was a little surprised that I honored the surgery COMAT.

ps. also review the viscerosomatics and Chapman's points for GI organs.
 
I'll be retaking the surgery comat as well - super bummed. I read the GI and surgery chapters in MTB, USMLE secrets, Pestena's, did all of Uweapon, COMBANK and COMBANK comat surgery/GI questbank questions. I guess next time around I need to buy Uworld and do casefiles...any suggestions on when to retake? Our school gives us 60 days, but I have other core rotations/exams going on right now as well? Sooner is better than later?
 
Back in the day, I scored 86% raw (first year they used COMATs, no adjusted scores yet) by just studying Pestana, Uworld and COMQUEST surg qs. Seemed like the easiest of the COMATs...maybe they changed it up.

(Oops...I see I posted this back in the day above as well.)
 
I don't know - some people say they think the surgery comat is the easiest, others say it's the hardest...I think there are multiple forms that are on opposite ends of the spectrum. I thought surgery was my hardest comat thus far - The form I had made my IM comat seem like a cake-walk :/
 
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