How do you remember all the drug toxicities?

[GomerPyle]

---

Members do not see this ad.

I feel like the toxicities are so random and there are so many for each drug. How do you guys go about memorizing all of them (and do you)??

 

[jshei0625]

The first approach you should have for learning drug side effects is knowing the major one or two side effects that sets that drug apart from others in that category. Pharm questions are going to test your ability to differentiate different drugs that treat the same condition. Knowing that the first generation sulfonylurea produce a disulfiram-like reaction while metformin can produce lactic acidosis in patients with renal failure is important in a question about Type 2 DM treatment.

The second approach is ignoring side effects that appear in most drugs. Half the drugs you will see have nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and headaches as a side effect. Knowing these kinds of side effects will not help you answer any of the pharm questions unless those side effects are the only major ones seen with the drug.

After using this approach, you just need to know the inducers and inhibitors of the P450 system, drugs that produce lupus like reactions, drugs that produce hemolytic anemia, and drugs that result in interstitial nephritis. This will get you 90+% of the drug toxicity questions correct.

 

[schwasted589]

I feel like the toxicities are so random and there are so many for each drug. How do you guys go about memorizing all of them (and do you)??

I'm in the same boat :S

 

[fastlane]

Flashcards for all of them

 

[Transposony]

I feel like the toxicities are so random and there are so many for each drug. How do you guys go about memorizing all of them (and do you)??

What's unique, what's different + FA memorization.

 

[nds86]

Repetition is key to everything, even the Step.

 

[seminoma]

Relatively few drugs have unique and testable toxicities.

 

[Transposony]

Relatively few drugs have unique and testable toxicities.

and for some strange reasons few of them are unique to Step1 but rare in the real world.