I suck at EKG's

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nvmd

nvmd

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So now that I've matched somewhere....I think I should brush up on EKG's since I still think they are a bunch of squiggly lines 🙂 jk but really I suck!!!

Just wondering which books really helped people master EKG reading?

Congrats to everyone who matched!!!

NVMD
 
I'll second the recommendation for Garcia. EKG is one of those things you don't learn, you re-learn. The brilliant thing about that book is that it's designed with this in mind. It's written by an EM doc and a Paramedic, so it's long on useful and short on jibber-jabber.
 
I'll third the recommendation. The Garcia books are the best ones out there, IMHO.

- R

(And I HATE the pedo- book)
 
Yup. Garcia book is the bomb. most of our residents use it. I used it and went from EKG idiot to "Look, I see a bunny running in the field".

Seriously. Its a great book.
 
There is this book by Garcia, I dont think anyone on the forum has heard of it, called 12 Lead ECG: The Art of Interpretation. It is excellent.
 
I would try The ekg book by Thaler. im reading it now and im also in the midst of my CCU rotation. its been very helpful.
 
kungfufishing said:
There is this book by Garcia, I dont think anyone on the forum has heard of it, called 12 Lead ECG: The Art of Interpretation. It is excellent.
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Yeah, I think this book will be a huge hit in the future. 👍

All kidding aside. JUST RELAX AND ENJOY LIFE UNTIL JULY! Don't worry about brushing up on EKGs, or doing any medical work/prep for that matter. Trust me, you will never have a time like you have between match and orientation ever again. LIVE IT UP. You will see plenty of ekg's over the rest of your career. You're an intern in july...no one expects anything from you aside from reaquainting yourself with your stethescope.
 
Thanks everyone, I think I know which book to read now.

Don't know if I will spend a whole lot of time studying but it will def make me feel better just having the book.

Thanks!!
 
Dr. Will said:
JUST RELAX AND ENJOY LIFE UNTIL JULY! Don't worry about brushing up on EKGs, or doing any medical work/prep for that matter. .
Click to expand...


I'm taking this advice to heart. I've spent the last 36 hours consuming hops/barely and it's been fun. EKG's....got three words for you....Benign Early Repolarization!


That's all you need to know my friend 😉

Maybe a little more...but it will all come in due time.
 
enfuegoEP said:
I'm taking this advice to heart. I've spent the last 36 hours consuming hops/barely and it's been fun. EKG's....got three words for you....Benign Early Repolarization!


That's all you need to know my friend 😉

Maybe a little more...but it will all come in due time.
Click to expand...

Good call, enfuego....good call. Keep working on those hops. 👍
 
just as another reference...

I purchased Malcom Thaler's "The Only EKG Book You'll Ever Need." It was a recommendation by someone here on SDN (I can't remember who). Anyhow, it's an awesome book ! 👍
 
i liked the "only EKG book you'll ever need" book referenced above. i think it really does a good job of going over the basics in a way that won't make you fall asleep.

but...if you actually want to get good at ekgs, i recommend a book called "150 practice ekgs." i found it online when i was a student for like 20 bucks. its got a teaching section in the beginning, and then a whole bunch of practice ekgs. i took like 30 minutes each day between graduation and when residency started, and went through them 10 at a time, and then looked at the interpretations. it really helped me establish a systematic way of breaking down an ekg. it really helped my confidence...so much so that I regularly volunteer to interpret the ekg during our "ekg of the week" portion of our grand rounds conference. i can't tell you how much that book helped me.
 
Learn the rules, start at the basics IE P wave, and why it all happens then go from there. You can't expect to spot a 2nd Degree type II when your unsure what NSR looks like. But thats pretty much how everything in Medicine goes.
 
I don't think I saw it mentioned, my apology if it has. Dale Dubin's EKG Interpretation will give you a completely different insight of reading your strips. If you can get passed the old school photos and the neon orange front cover it explains everything in great simplicity.
 
Either that, or MacBook is drunk enough to have read the thread, and STILL not remember.

Which would of course be fine.
 
Check out this free website....go to "browse the case list" and you get some 300+ cases with a bit of HPI and the EKG. You get to write in an answer and see if you are correct. Great explanations and the writing in answers makes you commit so you can't BS yourself.

http://ecg.bidmc.harvard.edu/maven/mavenmain.asp
 
pseudoknot said:
I totally wasn't going to go there until you stirred it all up! Instigator!
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I totally WAS going to go there but you beat me to it!

It's funny, I had a paramedic student work with me in the ED last night. She showed me her copy of Dubin. When I made some variety of the pedophile comment, she looked at me like I was from Mars and had just made it up.

I proceeded to simply hold it up to each physician who walked into the room. To a person, pedophile was the first thing out of their mouths when they saw it. 🙂

Take care,
Jeff
 
that is hilarious and would probably be my initial reaction as well.
 
a couple days late, but the art of 12 lead EKG by Garcia is by far the best EKG book out there. I've been recommending that book here on SDN for years, since I was a wee M3, actually.

If you read that (atleast, the Level 2 stuff) before and during internship, you will be able to read EKGs probably better htan half of your attendings.

There are two types of docs, those that can read EKGs "ok" (like those that read Dubin's EKG book), are don't miss much but don't know the nuances. Then there are those docs that can REALLY read EKGs and know their stuff... (those that read extra EKG books). Honestly, clinically its not going ot make THAT much of a difference, but it does help especially in an academic setting.

Q
 
DrQuinn said:
a couple days late, but the art of 12 lead EKG by Garcia is by far the best EKG book out there. I've been recommending that book here on SDN for years, since I was a wee M3, actually.

If you read that (atleast, the Level 2 stuff) before and during internship, you will be able to read EKGs probably better htan half of your attendings.

There are two types of docs, those that can read EKGs "ok" (like those that read Dubin's EKG book), are don't miss much but don't know the nuances. Then there are those docs that can REALLY read EKGs and know their stuff... (those that read extra EKG books). Honestly, clinically its not going ot make THAT much of a difference, but it does help especially in an academic setting.

Q
Click to expand...

I've done both, and I agree with Quinn. I once was a devoted Dubin reader, but I wanted more information. I thought Garcia's book was just perfect.
 
Febrifuge said:
Either that, or MacBook is drunk enough to have read the thread, and STILL not remember.

Which would of course be fine.
Click to expand...

elgnsih raed wlel I do😎
 
SoCuteMD said:
I've done both, and I agree with Quinn. I once was a devoted Dubin reader, but I wanted more information. I thought Garcia's book was just perfect.
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This pushed me over the edge. I ordered Garcia's book. 49.00 bucks seems like a lot of money this time of the year, I hope the book is worth it.
 
enfuegoEP said:
This pushed me over the edge. I ordered Garcia's book. 49.00 bucks seems like a lot of money this time of the year, I hope the book is worth it.
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Worth every penny. Both of them are. The Arrhythmia Recognition one is THE best rhythm interpretation book in the market (I taught EKGs to Medics and RNs for ~10 years, so I've seen/owned most of them).

The 12-Lead ECG one is also awesome, and is suited to multiple levels of learning depending on how much you know.

I've gotten my school and clinical sites to get both of these for their libraries, and I have no financial stake in Jones & Bartlett.

- R
 
enfuegoEP said:
I'm taking this advice to heart. I've spent the last 36 hours consuming hops/barely and it's been fun. EKG's....got three words for you....Benign Early Repolarization!


That's all you need to know my friend 😉

Maybe a little more...but it will all come in due time.
Click to expand...

No pun intended? 😉
 
Pardon me while I shamelessly +pad+
 
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