How are the labs given in the USMLE?

Lab values are given to you in a similar format as Kaplan Q bank (you click on a link). I think that Q bank has all of the same labs as the USMLE. I don't think that I ever needed normal lab values for any of my questions though.

 

Lab values on Step 1 are not usually in SI. The units used are usually the units you'd expect to see while on the floor.

 

Well the point of my advice, which I didn't think was too far of a leap, was to pick up any medical reference booklet (e.g., Maxwell's Quick Reference, Guide to Interpretation of Laboratory Tests, etc.) and look up what the standard values are.

No, the advice is not NOT worry about the lab values but you'll learn what they are as you do more and more questions. You'll have an idea of what a normal range is by the time you're done studying for that exam. Memorizing them in a sitting is hardly worth the effort.

A fever is >100.3 (or 100.8 depending on whom you ask) degrees Farenheit.

 

In terms of format of the table, I thought the lab values given on the real exam was a lot different than the one from Kaplans. The closest approximation was those found on the CD ROM. The lab values on the real exam is in ultra-small prints, which I felt sometimes strains my eyes when I read it (especially in test centers where the monitors are crappy and were set on low refresh rates, like my local test center). And the fact that there is no key scroll or line scroll means you have to click down line by line which wastes a lot of time.

In order to save valuable time on the test, I have 2 suggestions that I think would be helpful: either know exactly where to look for labs (ie. know the layout of the table well, through either the CD ROM or the practice test session given by Prometric) or, a better idea, is to know the normal values of the important labs well. (i would say the BMP 7, the bloodwork 4+2, Ca, Phos, Mg are the important ones)