How specific will the questions on Step 1 be regarding the abdominal blood supply?

[sab3156]

How specific are questions on Step 1 regarding blood supply to the abdominal organs? Is the information like "Celiac trunk -> foregut and spleen, SMA -> midgut, IMA -> hindgut", etc., OK? How likely is it that a question would pop up on Step 1 that really tests your understanding of the specific branches and further branches of the abdominal aorta and exactly what parts of the abdominal organs they supply?

Firecracker goes into a ton of detail, but I feel like the questions cannot be that specific. The Qbanks I'm using don't get that specific, either.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[Anti-PD1]

How specific are questions on Step 1 regarding blood supply to the abdominal organs? Is the information like "Celiac trunk -> foregut and spleen, SMA -> midgut, IMA -> hindgut", etc., OK? How likely is it that a question would pop up on Step 1 that really tests your understanding of the specific branches and further branches of the abdominal aorta and exactly what parts of the abdominal organs they supply?

Firecracker goes into a ton of detail, but I feel like the questions cannot be that specific. The Qbanks I'm using don't get that specific, either.

Know the branches. I remember a question in a Q bank that forced me to remember common hepatic vs. proper hepatic.

It's those specific questions that thin out the herd at the top.

 

[sab3156]

Know the branches. I remember a question in a Q bank that forced me to remember common hepatic vs. proper hepatic.

It's those specific questions that thin out the herd at the top.

Thanks!

More specifically, I am wondering about stuff like, for example, is it enough to know "SMA supplies the proximal colon (cecum, ascending colon, and the proximal 2/3rds of the transverse colon) via the ileocolic, right colic, and middle colic arteries", or should I really know what parts are supplied by the ileocolic artery specifically, and right colic artery specifically, and middle colic artery specifically?

My anki deck is getting really wild when it comes to blood supply due to the fact that parts of the body aren't supplied by just one vessel, and one vessel doesn't just supply one part of the body.

 

[Rahas]

Those names you listed are very easy to memorize because they're logical. I have learned them. I don't think its so difficult that you need to put it into anki.

Use an atlas or google when you study anatomy btw, becomes much easier once you see it.

 

[sab3156]

Those names you listed are very easy to memorize because they're logical. I have learned them. I don't think its so difficult that you need to put it into anki.

Use an atlas or google when you study anatomy btw, becomes much easier once you see it.

It's not that simple once you are dealing with dozens of vessels. Sure, I can learn them for an anatomy exam. But has anyone had any Step 1 questions that are super specific about really specific branches and what parts of organs they supply? For example, should we really know that the ascending colon is supplied by the right colic artery? Or should we just know that the right colic artery, ileocolic artery, and middle colic artery supply the colon? Has anyone been asked like "someone got shot in the abdomen in the middle of where the ascending colon resides, which artery is likely to be damaged?" Or has anyone been given a radiographic image and asked to identify a very specific branch of some artery? I'm worried about questions like that.

 

[Anti-PD1]

It's not that simple once you are dealing with dozens of vessels. Sure, I can learn them for an anatomy exam. But has anyone had any Step 1 questions that are super specific about really specific branches and what parts of organs they supply? For example, should we really know that the ascending colon is supplied by the right colic artery? Or should we just know that the right colic artery, ileocolic artery, and middle colic artery supply the colon? Has anyone been asked like "someone got shot in the abdomen in the middle of where the ascending colon resides, which artery is likely to be damaged?" Or has anyone been given a radiographic image and asked to identify a very specific branch of some artery? I'm worried about questions like that.

Questions are never like that. Questions have a purpose. I understand what you're asking. I don't remember specific questions, but yes, knowing right colic v. middle colic v. left colic is necessary.

A question that makes more sense, in that it tests physiology and pathology, is what are the watershed areas of the colon? And why?