HELP regarding embryology!

[shreypete]

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My histology and embryology exam is coming up in about in about 2 weeks and i've so far only done up to the 4th week of embryonic development. I'm just not able to get past that because it gets so confusing (despite following the diagrams). I'm following Before We Are Born by Moore (which I think is way better and easier to understand rather than Langman's Embryology). But I'm still having a hard time visualizing how everything works......Embryology is SO HARD!!!!!

And I have to finish the systematic development within 2 weeks....ugh...this is so frustrating (although the subject is interesting...just had to visualize and memorize the events on the exact days).

Any help would indeed be a HUGE help....thank you very much...

 

[LadyWolverine]

Just read Langman's. Skip the really detailed molecular biology stuff (except it is really pertinent in a couple of chapters, so maybe it's worth at least skimming). Seriously, it should take you about 2 days to read all of Langman's. The clinical correlates in the blue boxes are solid gold, too. I actually really liked Langman's, and even re-read it for Step 1 prep.

Embryology isn't that bad. The only part that is truly difficult is trying to understand the first 8 weeks - gastrulation is a bitch. Heart embryology used to make me sweat, but now, if you just think of it as a big tube that gets stretched and smooshed together, it's actually not so terrible.

 

[shreypete]

Hey there thanks. Luckily I don't have to read the clinical stuff for the final exam. Just the entire theory...I find it a bit hard to follow Langman's for some reason....I guess I'll give it another try...

 

[DickyV]

Play-Doh.

Seriously - it helps with visualizing the weird folding that takes place during the first eight weeks of development.

In addition, I found that making a chart of what develops from what helped me immensely.

 

[Haemulon]

Embryo is really difficult for a lot of med students, so don't feel too bad. I think many of us just don't have much exposure to it ahead of time, so it all seems so foreign. Plus, everything is so small and is moving around and changing day by day, so we have to think about it differently then say ... anatomy or histo. Just do your best, at most schools it is just a small portion of the whole first year curriculum and it isn't a really big part of Step 1. That being said, it is still important, so don't blow it off either. Good luck!

 

[shreypete]

thanks. I felt the first few weeks of embryologic development to be fun but after that it just so confusing that I keep mixing up the events and the origins and stuff...ugh...I really don't like this subject. We finished the whole of embryology in less than two months and now I have tons of questions to do for the final (which btw is not a MCQ test...it's an oral exam). Oh well, I guess I just have to suck it up and continue trying my best...I feel that I waste to much time drawing pictures...

 

[Monica Lewinsky]

thanks. I felt the first few weeks of embryologic development to be fun but after that it just so confusing that I keep mixing up the events and the origins and stuff...ugh...I really don't like this subject. We finished the whole of embryology in less than two months and now I have tons of questions to do for the final (which btw is not a MCQ test...it's an oral exam). Oh well, I guess I just have to suck it up and continue trying my best...I feel that I waste to much time drawing pictures...

There's only 2 reasons we learn embryology as medical students, aside from the intellectual challenge: to understand anatomy better and to understand the causations of congenital defects.

You should seriously chill out about this course, since it ultimately isn't too important for your career, other than that you need to pass it. I found High Yield Embryology to be a concise text that went over the points of embryology that are important.

 

[Blade28]

And in the end there isn't that much Embryo on Step 1 anyway.

 

[DickyV]

We finished the whole of embryology in less than two months and now I have tons of questions to do for the final (which btw is not a MCQ test...it's an oral exam).

Ouch.

Since it's an oral exam, I'd suggest studying in a similar fashion - be able to "tell the story" of a given organ. From what germ layer does it develop, what major signaling factors trigger its development and maturation, at what date ranges do its major developmental 'tasks' occur, where/how/when does it move, what pathologies are associated with malformations/errors in development? I think you get the point.

One thing to be aware of in embryo - talk with students who have taken it to get an idea of how nitpicky professors get in dates. Some professors want you to know that something is in the first trimester, while others will peg you to "day 27." (Also, it doesn't apply to your case, but I've seen crappy questions where the answer is 3 weeks, but the MCQ options are 2 and 4. Or, better yet, you were taught 3 weeks and the answer choices are 2-3 weeks or 3-4 weeks.)

 

[KeepJumping]

Embryology can be tricky. I recommend knowing the information in First Aid; most of that was on our test. You may just have to memorize some of these details, if you're up against a time crunch between fully understanding and the exam date. Also, High Yield Embryology was extremely helpful for me during test prep. It is easy to get lost with the details in Before We Are Born and Langmann's Embryology. Good Luck!

 

[Haemulon]

Ouch.

Since it's an oral exam, I'd suggest studying in a similar fashion - be able to "tell the story" of a given organ. From what germ layer does it develop, what major signaling factors trigger its development and maturation, at what date ranges do its major developmental 'tasks' occur, where/how/when does it move, what pathologies are associated with malformations/errors in development? I think you get the point.

One thing to be aware of in embryo - talk with students who have taken it to get an idea of how nitpicky professors get in dates. Some professors want you to know that something is in the first trimester, while others will peg you to "day 27." (Also, it doesn't apply to your case, but I've seen crappy questions where the answer is 3 weeks, but the MCQ options are 2 and 4. Or, better yet, you were taught 3 weeks and the answer choices are 2-3 weeks or 3-4 weeks.)

I have seen this. Drives me crazy. Unfortunately, poor question writing isn't just restricted to embryology 🙁 Ah well, it is what it is.

 

[shreypete]

Hey there DickyV and everyone, thank you very much for your suggestions...I shall try some of your ways and see if it works out for me....thank you once again...

 

[78222]

Just cram it enough to pass your test. The histo is useful as a building block for path but the embryology is an absolute waste of time.