Anyone think Step 2 Secrets is outdated? (it IS from '04)

[Ascultator]

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CRUSH is now in its 3rd edition this year, I'm wondering why they don't have a new one for SECRETS, which most of us seem to prefer given its format and friendly size.

But SECRET's is 3 years old, -- the screening guidelines in the Prev Med section is way off today's guidelines, to give an example.

So, CRUSH '07 ed over Secrets '04 ?

 

[golfpropsychguy]

CRUSH is now in its 3rd edition this year, I'm wondering why they don't have a new one for SECRETS, which most of us seem to prefer given its format and friendly size.

But SECRET's is 3 years old, -- the screening guidelines in the Prev Med section is way off today's guidelines, to give an example.

So, CRUSH '07 ed over Secrets '04 ?

I tried both of them but honestly the information would stick in my head better with secrets, the book is worth its weight in gold. If you use it with world and read it twice you can do really well. I re-read the entire book 2 days before the exam. The second time I read it I was flying through it because I remembered most of it from the first read. The stuff thats out of dated becomes clear when you do world with it but you can update that on your own.

Good luck

 

[Pinner Doc]

The only thing I can remember truly thinking "that's not true" in Step 2 secrets is the use of demerol rather than morphine for gallstones. Most hospitals I've worked at don't use demerol because it SIGNIFICANTLY lowers the seizure threshold.

 

[Ascultator]

Thanks folks.

Also, on inspection, the Guidelines section I mentioned DON'T appear to have been updated for Crush 3rd ed, anyways, and I wonder what else hasn't been updated either.

So yeah, Secrets + UW to update its contents def seems to be the way to go.

And that's a good point too that Secrets can be reread in just a few days.

Thanks!

 

[jdig]

i love, love, love secrests. it and world got me through ck. highly recommend. its fairly easy to know cold btw.

 

[Mathemagician]

bump.

just started 3rd yr and am trying to find a good resource (besides usmleworld, of course) for step 2 studying. it seems like usmle step 2 secrets is pretty popular, but like the op i'm wondering if a new edition is coming out soon....seems like there would be quite a bit of outdated info since its 4 years old. anyone know if they're releasing a new edition within the next 6 months? i would hate to buy the book now only to find out a new one comes out in september!

 

[Terpskins99]

bump.

just started 3rd yr and am trying to find a good resource (besides usmleworld, of course) for step 2 studying. it seems like usmle step 2 secrets is pretty popular, but like the op i'm wondering if a new edition is coming out soon....seems like there would be quite a bit of outdated info since its 4 years old. anyone know if they're releasing a new edition within the next 6 months? i would hate to buy the book now only to find out a new one comes out in september!

yeah, because once the new book comes out the 3rd edition will be totally obsolete. Man, I bet it'll even have a different colored cover! 🙄

Buying the most recent book for anything is for suckers.

 

[DOCTORSAIB]

I'm a part-time boards consultant for one of the big publishing companies...

ANYWAYS, the reason you see a brand new edition of Crush for Step 2 is b/c it's sales were lagging behind Secrets. Like bigtime lagging. And it's a known fact that making a "new" edition of a book boosts sales. And that med nerds are suckers for new editions.

So what does the publishing company do? Bust out a new edition of Crush! I'm not at all surprised that there isn't a major difference vs the older edition of Crush. It's all marketing man. And we're the pawns.

 

[domer621]

I thought Secrets was too outdated to be really useful. The new version of Crush is updated and better in terms of content. I don't think a new Secrets is coming out until next year.

 

[Mathemagician]

yeah, because once the new book comes out the 3rd edition will be totally obsolete. Man, I bet it'll even have a different colored cover! 🙄

Buying the most recent book for anything is for suckers.

i agree with you to a certain extent, especially for series like First Aid where a new edition comes out every year. in that case does it matter if you have the '08 vs '09 edition? no.

but secrets is several years old now, and i'd think there would be quite a few changes if a new edition came out. yes, while 80% of the book will probably be exactly the same, i think its reasonable to get the new edition for the 20% of updated or corrected info.

and if they threw in a shiny purple cover and some glossy color pictures....i mean who could resist? 😉

 

[Terpskins99]

i agree with you to a certain extent, especially for series like First Aid where a new edition comes out every year. in that case does it matter if you have the '08 vs '09 edition? no.

but secrets is several years old now, and i'd think there would be quite a few changes if a new edition came out. yes, while 80% of the book will probably be exactly the same, i think its reasonable to get the new edition for the 20% of updated or corrected info.

And I can guarantee you that > 95% of the new Secrets will be the same re-hashed information.

You know what material is highest yield on boards? Its not the wishy washy 2-3 additional criteria that gets altered every other annual conference of american whateverologists. The highest yield material on boards are the classic examples/presentation that have stayed the same for decades.

 

[DOCTORSAIB]

And I can guarantee you that > 95% of the new Secrets will be the same re-hashed information.

You know what material is highest yield on boards? Its not the wishy washy 2-3 additional criteria that gets altered every other annual conference of american whateverologists. The highest yield material on boards are the classic examples/presentation that have stayed the same for decades.

Very true.

This "tiny" fear among med students is how publishing companies makes MILLIONS every year. It's really amazing if you think about it.

 

[Systole]

All I did is memorize Step 2 Secrets and I got 227/94. Took about 2 weeks of cramming.

 

[Femtochemistry]

And I can guarantee you that > 95% of the new Secrets will be the same re-hashed information.

You know what material is highest yield on boards? Its not the wishy washy 2-3 additional criteria that gets altered every other annual conference of american whateverologists. The highest yield material on boards are the classic examples/presentation that have stayed the same for decades.

exactly...

 

[QofQuimica]

bump.

just started 3rd yr and am trying to find a good resource (besides usmleworld, of course) for step 2 studying. it seems like usmle step 2 secrets is pretty popular, but like the op i'm wondering if a new edition is coming out soon....seems like there would be quite a bit of outdated info since its 4 years old. anyone know if they're releasing a new edition within the next 6 months? i would hate to buy the book now only to find out a new one comes out in september!

Go ahead and buy the old edition unless you're planning to take Step 2 late next year. According to the Elsevier folks, the new edition won't come out until around a year from now (Aug. 2009).

 

[BOHICA-FIGMO]

The only thing I can remember truly thinking "that's not true" in Step 2 secrets is the use of demerol rather than morphine for gallstones. Most hospitals I've worked at don't use demerol because it SIGNIFICANTLY lowers the seizure threshold.

That and some outdated info on COX-2 inhibitors 😱

 

[Old_Mil]

I just got ahold of Secrets...this is one killer book. So much so that I just bumped my boards back a month so I've got time to go through it twice.

 

[kae51202]

I'm curious if anyone has obtained the new edition and how it compares to the previous edition. I'm taking the test Oct 2009 and am not sure if I should buy the 2004 secrets vs. waiting for the new edition.
vs. 2007 crush
Any insight appreciated!

 

[AFDuck]

2004 secrets and 2007 crush contain nearly identical info in different formats. Not sure if there is a new secrets out at this point...

 

[Frugal Traveler]

2004 secrets and 2007 crush contain nearly identical info in different formats. Not sure if there is a new secrets out at this point...

All the books that Adam Brochert publishes are the same but the material is in a different order... that guy probably reads films from 8 AM - 11 AM, lunch, spends an hour rearranging text to make a new edition, and then goes home by 12:45 to swim in his pool of $ 20 bills.

Roll the credits...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zxtn6-XQupM

 

[markglt]

couldn't have said it better

 

[badgerred]

I don't know how people can read Secrets twice and do well on Step 2. There is a lot of information missing from it. Just from memory, this is what I remember missing from it

1. Testicular Cancer - breaking down the different types and lab values
2. Breast cancer - breaking down the different types, pathology and Dx and Tx of each
3. Opthalmology - weak in general
4. OB/GYN - failed to cover what to do about management regarding ectopic pregnancy and beta HCG levels (knowing what levels are high enough to visualizing it on ultrasound versus doing a laprascopy) and was just weak in general
5. EKG's were terrible and not well visualized. Plus, it doesn't go into management of each type arrythmia and how to distinguish between different infarcts

There is a lot more I could include but I think you get the point.The only true complete and comprehensive texts are the Kaplan books but they take a while to go through but they truly are thorough. This is why I think USMLEWorld should be used. It's comprehensive for USMLE Step 2 (don't think it's a good source for COMLEX)

Don't get me wrong, I think Secrets is a great book but unless you have an extremely solid foundation and remember everything you read all year. I wouldn't expect to read Secrets twice and get a 227. This book should be part of your study but USMLEWORLD is a much better source and should be the primary source of your study for Step2

 

[Guyton Killah]

I don't know how people can read Secrets twice and do well on Step 2. There is a lot of information missing from it. Just from memory, this is what I remember missing from it

1. Testicular Cancer - breaking down the different types and lab values
2. Breast cancer - breaking down the different types, pathology and Dx and Tx of each
3. Opthalmology - weak in general
4. OB/GYN - failed to cover what to do about management regarding ectopic pregnancy and beta HCG levels (knowing what levels are high enough to visualizing it on ultrasound versus doing a laprascopy) and was just weak in general
5. EKG's were terrible and not well visualized. Plus, it doesn't go into management of each type arrythmia and how to distinguish between different infarcts

There is a lot more I could include but I think you get the point.The only true complete and comprehensive texts are the Kaplan books but they take a while to go through but they truly are thorough. This is why I think USMLEWorld should be used. It's comprehensive for USMLE Step 2 (don't think it's a good source for COMLEX)

Don't get me wrong, I think Secrets is a great book but unless you have an extremely solid foundation and remember everything you read all year. I wouldn't expect to read Secrets twice and get a 227. This book should be part of your study but USMLEWORLD is a much better source and should be the primary source of your study for Step2

Anybody used Kaplan? How is it relative to secretes?

 

[ucsfstudents]

Secrets is a great book. Even if it is from the dark ages. I would still recommend it.

 

[tfom08]

Anybody used Kaplan? How is it relative to secretes?

They are pretty comprehensive for Step 2 ck, not enough for shelf exam studying. I thought they were great for step 2 review. No review book is going to cover EVERYTHING that is on Step 2 ck, but Kaplan is a good trade off between something short (FA/Crush/Secrets) and an actual comprehensive review which would take far too long. Each book can be read in probably 2 days depending on how strong your knowledge base is. And Kaplan definitely has info in them that you won't find in the shorter review books, so it just depends on what your goals are in regards to time allotted / desired score on step 2.

Totally different format than Secrets though. I think most people read Secrets for the format and the high yield nature of the info. Like someone else said, you need to have a good knowledge base to do well using just secrets. It's not nearly comprehensive. However, keep in mind that along with UW, any source will be pretty comprehensive. Most of the people using Secrets are also using UW, which makes all the difference.