I'm going to fail my first gross anatomy exam

[Member 987653]

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That may be a slight exaggeration, but my first gross exam is on Wednesday (written and practical) and I'm feeling completely screwed. I've been using all sorts of anatomy resources and taking practice tests (scores ranging from 68-76% ), but I'm still having a really hard time memorizing the specific origins and insertions of the muscles of the upper limb and my understanding of the lower limb is a mess. I have other subjects to study for between now and Wednesday so I can't spend every waking second on this one subject.

I would really appreciate any advice that you may have to offer.

Thanks!

 

[Arkangeloid]

In the words of my TA,

As long as you're getting above a 50% on your practice test, [passing is a 70% at our school], you're fine brah.

 

[Anastomoses]

I used a whiteboard to list origins/insertions/innervation/blood supply/movement of muscles. Fill in the chart orally. Give yourself a time limit for each muscle. It gets done with a little pressure.

And ignore advice from Arkangloid regarding anything anatomy or math related.

 

[Arkangeloid]

I used a whiteboard to list origins/insertions/innervation/blood supply/movement of muscles. Fill in the chart orally. Give yourself a time limit for each muscle. It gets done with a little pressure.

And ignore advice from Arkangloid regarding anything anatomy related.

That's why I said my TA said it. Obviously I'm not going to give advice on the subject when I don't know a Breast from a Bartholin's gland.

 

[GUH]

As long as you aren't more than a standard deviation below the mean, you're fine. They can't kick out everyone!

Besides, a lot of people fail their first anatomy exam and still somehow become successful physicians.

 

[Anastomoses]

That's why I said my TA said it. Obviously I'm not going to give advice on the subject when I don't know a Breast from a Bartholin's gland.

You're growing on me. I hope you noticed my edit 🙂

 

[Arkangeloid]

You're growing on me. I hope you noticed my edit 🙂

Lol. At our school, we have a mock Anatomy exam a few days before the real one, which they make deliberately hard on purpose to scare people. The rule of thumb is that if you get about 60% of those questions right and study hard, you'll do just fine.

 

[Anastomoses]

Lol. At our school, we have a mock Anatomy exam a few days before the real one, which they make deliberately hard on purpose to scare people. The rule of thumb is that if you get about 60% of those questions right and study hard, you'll do just fine.

deliberately hard on purpose? ouch.

 

[survivordo]

It's pretty common to do poorly or fail your first gross anatomy exam. The subject matter and skills to study it are completely foreign to most new medical students. There are tricks to make it easier though which you can read about here "how to study for gross anatomy"

Survivor DO

 

[miltown66]

Welcome to the club

 

[Doctor Strange]

Half of my class allegedly failed the first practical. It's likely you'll have company.

 

[yehhhboiii]

As long as you aren't more than a standard deviation below the mean, you're fine. They can't kick out everyone!

Besides, a lot of people fail their first anatomy exam and still somehow become successful physicians.

i know a dude who barely passed anatomy and is now an integrated vascular resident
he applied to a ton of residencies though

 

[evilbooyaa]

OP should change his screen name to neurotic med student 987653. Arkangeloid can change his to neurotic med student 987652.

 

[shibby1111]

Lol. At our school, we have a mock Anatomy exam a few days before the real one, which they make deliberately hard on purpose to scare people. The rule of thumb is that if you get about 60% of those questions right and study hard, you'll do just fine.

I am pretty sure we go to the same school! Let me guess, the mock was cake and half the class bombed the real exam. 25/25?

 

[Arkangeloid]

I am pretty sure we go to the same school! Let me guess, the mock was cake and half the class bombed the real exam. 25/25?

No, the class did surprisingly well on the real exam here.

 

[IonClaws]

That may be a slight exaggeration, but my first gross exam is on Wednesday (written and practical) and I'm feeling completely screwed. I've been using all sorts of anatomy resources and taking practice tests (scores ranging from 68-76% ), but I'm still having a really hard time memorizing the specific origins and insertions of the muscles of the upper limb and my understanding of the lower limb is a mess. I have other subjects to study for between now and Wednesday so I can't spend every waking second on this one subject.

I would really appreciate any advice that you may have to offer.

Thanks!

So, OP...how did you feel about the exam yesterday?

 

[aspiringdoc09]

Bump

I am having legitimate issues with this subject too. I took my first exam today. I admit that I could have prepared slightly better but I am having a hard time with the lecture component of this class. The lab is fine because if I dissect it and can touch it, then I can learn it better. However, when trying to reason through 2nd and 3rd ordered questions on the written portion, I have a hard time envisioning what is happening abstractly. Terrible, right?! So far, I have rapid review, Gray's basic anatomy (1st ed. required), I just order a Thieme, and I have a grant's atlas for lab. Plus I have pdf versions of netters and rohens. I also have a pdf BRS and Rohen's flash cards.

At our school we rotate our dissections. Group A dissects one week (my group) and group B dissects the next week, but our group members are suppose to review with us what they did. It didn't work out that way, so I found myself racing the clock trying to learn everything. Very stressful and annoying!

Any other advice? Btw, Survivor DO, I found your website and use the ect.downstate.edu website too. I think I have a plan, but I don't want to fail either.

 

[Brain Bucket]

deliberately hard on purpose? ouch.

Tsk tsk.

Bump

I am having legitimate issues with this subject too. I took my first exam today. I admit that I could have prepared slightly better but I am having a hard time with the lecture component of this class. The lab is fine because if I dissect it and can touch it, then I can learn it better. However, when trying to reason through 2nd and 3rd ordered questions on the written portion, I have a hard time envisioning what is happening abstractly. Terrible, right?! So far, I have rapid review, Gray's basic anatomy (1st ed. required), I just order a Thieme, and I have a grant's atlas for lab. Plus I have pdf versions of netters and rohens. I also have a pdf BRS and Rohen's flash cards.

At our school we rotate our dissections. Group A dissects one week (my group) and group B dissects the next week, but our group members are suppose to review with us what they did. It didn't work out that way, so I found myself racing the clock trying to learn everything. Very stressful and annoying!

Any other advice? Btw, Survivor DO, I found your website and use the ect.downstate.edu website too. I think I have a plan, but I don't want to fail either.

Do MCQs? There are quite a few sources for Anatomy Questions.

For the practical, I remember making digital flashcards and a LOT of tables.

 

[DrEnderW]

I would recommend Netter + BRS for lecture exams. I can't imagine not having a hard copy of Netter. BRS is great for clinical correlates and tying things together. If you know everything in BRS you will do well. For practice questions, it's Gray's review. Again, if you can answer these and know the clinical correlates from BRS you will do more than fine.

 

[Anastomoses]

Bump

I am having legitimate issues with this subject too. I took my first exam today. I admit that I could have prepared slightly better but I am having a hard time with the lecture component of this class. The lab is fine because if I dissect it and can touch it, then I can learn it better. However, when trying to reason through 2nd and 3rd ordered questions on the written portion, I have a hard time envisioning what is happening abstractly. Terrible, right?! So far, I have rapid review, Gray's basic anatomy (1st ed. required), I just order a Thieme, and I have a grant's atlas for lab. Plus I have pdf versions of netters and rohens. I also have a pdf BRS and Rohen's flash cards.

Could you give examples of what you mean by reasoning through 2nd or 3rd ordered questions? I don't remember any reasoning involved in anatomy so I'm very curious.

Tsk tsk.

Oh, you of all people would catch me at that.

 

[VisionaryTics]

Could you give examples of what you mean by reasoning through 2nd or 3rd ordered questions? I don't remember any reasoning involved in anatomy so I'm very curious.

Let's say the prof tags the lacrimal gland.

Q: A brainstem lesion affecting the autonomic input to this structure would also affect fibers traveling through which nerve?

A. Auriculotemporal n.
B. Lingual n.
C. Greater auricular n.
D. Vagus n.
E. Short ciliary n.

 

[evilbooyaa]

Let's say the prof tags the lacrimal gland.

Q: A brainstem lesion affecting the autonomic input to this structure would also affect fibers traveling through which nerve?

A. Auriculotemporal n.
B. Lingual n.
C. Greater auricular n.
D. Vagus n.
E. Short ciliary n.

0/1 for me

 

[Arkangeloid]

1st order: "what's this thing bro"

2nd order: "what innervates this thing bro"

3rd order: "blah blah clinical crap to this thing bro"

 

[aspiringdoc09]

Could you give examples of what you mean by reasoning through 2nd or 3rd ordered questions? I don't remember any reasoning involved in anatomy so I'm very curious.



Oh, you of all people would catch me at that.

Basically, as others have mentioned but going far beyond questions asking you to simply identify something (1st order). 2nd order questions tells you what the structure is in the question stem but you need to have more acumen as far as what it does or may be affected if damaged. 3rd order questions can be even more difficult. At this point, I'm not sure if I have come across the latter but I would rather be overly prepared than underprepared.

Like I said, lab practicals are fine because they are simply ID. I am considering getting the Gray's Review book. I got my Thieme today.

 

[aspiringdoc09]

Tsk tsk.



Do MCQs? There are quite a few sources for Anatomy Questions.

For the practical, I remember making digital flashcards and a LOT of tables.

I've never been a flashcard person, but I did download Anki for Histo. Although, I'm not really using it at the moment. I will heed your advice though. I didn't utilize the Netter cards as much either. I started making changes today. Can't keep making the same mistakes and expecting different results. That's insanity.

 

[Brain Bucket]

I've never been a flashcard person, but I did download Anki for Histo. Although, I'm not really using it at the moment. I will heed your advice though. I didn't utilize the Netter cards as much either. I started making changes today. Can't keep making the same mistakes and expecting different results. That's insanity.

I think I should clarify. I didn't use premade Rohens and Netters cards. I wrote down every structure mentioned in lab as 'important'. Then I took screen shots of every view of that structure in Netter's, Rohen's, and Thieme digital atlases and tagged that structure in an anki image card. So, as I went over the cards, I'd have to ID the same structure 5-10 times from different perspectives and 'levels'. It's time intensive, and I'm sure there are better ways, but I passed the practical.

Also, there are a lot of great dissection videos out there. Ask your upperclassmen.

Edit: just saw that you said you're doing fine in labs, so keep doing what works for you.

For the theoretical component of the course, I'm sure someone has mentioned at least a version of this:

Do not get Gray's.

Get BRS, Pretest, Lippincott Anatomy Q&A, and if you're feeling ambitious, Moore's clinical anatomy (do the blue boxes if you don't feel like reading the entire text), to be done in that order, but make sure you do the first 3. Some people enjoy doing anatomy Recall closer to the test, but I couldn't be bothered. There are also some online quizzes that should be stickied on the forums. I think one of them was by University of Michigan, but I can't be sure. Again, ask your seniors about what's needed to pass YOUR school's anatomy course.

Sent from my GT-N7100 using Tapatalk 4

 

[Southplains]

I agree with the above. Moore's blue boxes are good for the written portion of the exam, but a lot of them are the same clinical correlates in BRS. UofMichigan has good online questions to start with, and then move on to the questions in BRS, Lippencotts, and PreTest. At my school we also have access to something called Exam Master online that is another source of questions. If you do all or most of these, you'll see the clinically important things over and over again, as well as all the different ways to ask about them.

 

[aspiringdoc09]

I think I should clarify. I didn't use premade Rohens and Netters cards. I wrote down every structure mentioned in lab as 'important'. Then I took screen shots of every view of that structure in Netter's, Rohen's, and Thieme digital atlases and tagged that structure in an anki image card. So, as I went over the cards, I'd have to ID the same structure 5-10 times from different perspectives and 'levels'. It's time intensive, and I'm sure there are better ways, but I passed the practical.

Also, there are a lot of great dissection videos out there. Ask your upperclassmen.

Edit: just saw that you said you're doing fine in labs, so keep doing what works for you.

For the theoretical component of the course, I'm sure someone has mentioned at least a version of this:

Do not get Gray's.

Get BRS, Pretest, Lippincott Anatomy Q&A, and if you're feeling ambitious, Moore's clinical anatomy (do the blue boxes if you don't feel like reading the entire text), to be done in that order, but make sure you do the first 3. Some people enjoy doing anatomy Recall closer to the test, but I couldn't be bothered. There are also some online quizzes that should be stickied on the forums. I think one of them was by University of Michigan, but I can't be sure. Again, ask your seniors about what's needed to pass YOUR school's anatomy course.

Sent from my GT-N7100 using Tapatalk 4

I agree with the above. Moore's blue boxes are good for the written portion of the exam, but a lot of them are the same clinical correlates in BRS. UofMichigan has good online questions to start with, and then move on to the questions in BRS, Lippencotts, and PreTest. At my school we also have access to something called Exam Master online that is another source of questions. If you do all or most of these, you'll see the clinically important things over and over again, as well as all the different ways to ask about them.

I remember my Biochem professor mentioning Exam Master as his question source; although, I haven't had to use it. I may check there for anatomy questions too. I was told by upperclassmen that Gray's Review was useful for passing the tests along with reading the clinical boxes in our Gray's textbook and using BRS/Rapid Review. Thanks. You all have been helpful.

 

[Nephronlearner]

What a topic for my first post on this forum 😎

Despite being a foreign student, I believe I can be somewhat helpful because I really hated anatomy in the 1st year.
I failed my first couple of exams and it took me quite a while until I found a way to learn it.

I really liked Moore's (the bigger one). I would read through the text once (or twice) and afterwards read the topic in BRS and just memorize as much as possible. While reading a textbook such as Moore's or Gray's may seem like a bit of a waste of time in the beginning, it really helps when it comes to the "big picture". (Which is why I would just read through the text to get the general idea and then learn the details from BRS).
Another thing some of my classmates found useful was Thieme pocket text and atlas by some German author.
Unfortunately, repetition is really the only way to learn anatomy...
University of Michigan has a good anatomy website with dissection videos and high quality questions. Check it out 🙂

Virtual Histology Lab was good for histo.

Hope it helps.

 

[mdtobe249]

Depends on your school - but blue boxes in Moore's were always tested. I also found that spending more time in lab and attempting to teach other people the different structures would help a LOT and would always have me much more confident for gross exams - videos are good but not quite the same. I think you just need a good atlas, and then something with more text to supplement, like BRS - then just make sure to test yourself constantly, in a variety of ways

 

[GangaMaster]

Let's say the prof tags the lacrimal gland.

Q: A brainstem lesion affecting the autonomic input to this structure would also affect fibers traveling through which nerve?

A. Auriculotemporal n.
B. Lingual n.
C. Greater auricular n.
D. Vagus n.
E. Short ciliary n.

E

 

[EnginrTheFuture]

E

I'm thinking B. Let me know if you agree with this explanation:

"Brainstem lesion" makes me think the parasympathetics are what are really effected because the sympathetics ride up the internal carotid from the sympathetic chain far from the brain stem. This question seems to be asking what cranial nerve is effected, and what autonomics does it involve itself in. The lacrimal nerve they tell you about gets parasympathetics from CN7 via the greater petrosal/ pterygopalatine ganglion. The only other nerve that caries parasympathetic fibers from CN7 is the nerve bringing the parasympathetics to the submandibular gland (AKA the lingual nerve of CN5). The chorda tympani branch of CN7 carries taste to the tongue AND parasympathetic control to the submandibular gland... and it is brought there via the lingual nerve.

 

[SurgeDO]

I'm thinking B. Let me know if you agree with this explanation:

"Brainstem lesion" makes me think the parasympathetics are what are really effected because the sympathetics ride up the internal carotid from the sympathetic chain far from the brain stem. This question seems to be asking what cranial nerve is effected, and what autonomics does it involve itself in. The lacrimal nerve they tell you about gets parasympathetics from CN7 via the greater petrosal/ pterygopalatine ganglion. The only other nerve that caries parasympathetic fibers from CN7 is the nerve bringing the parasympathetics to the submandibular gland (AKA the lingual nerve of CN5). The chorda tympani branch of CN7 carries taste to the tongue AND parasympathetic control to the submandibular gland... and it is brought there via the lingual nerve.

agreed. great explanation and great algorithm.



admittedly, i first thought it was B due to a trigeminal lesion. you made me have to dig up my anatomy notes...but yes, i completely agree with you. great refresher.

did you ever find a good chorda tympani? that was sort of the white whale for my anatomy class.

 

[notbobtrustme]

jesus, if my anatomy class had questions like that, I would have been ****ed.

 

[SCOTTYDAWG]

for reals. chillax with the 4th order questions heisenberg.

 

[EnginrTheFuture]

jesus, if my anatomy class had questions like that, I would have been ******.

I agree. That type of question would have been one of the few on the exam to separate the honors student from super duper honors. This is how the scale is likely set up at most schools.

Pass: Vast majority of 1st order questions, about 10% of second order questions
High Pass: Vast Majority of 1st order questions, 40% of second order questions
Honors: Vast majority of 1st order questions, 80% second order questions, nail some of the 3rd order questions to make up for the 1st and second you got wrong.

I would say my exams have less than 5% 3rd order questions.


My advice to the OP would be to use these resources in this order:

1) Your course director. Anything and everything he/she says, try to hear it, and use it to make your life easier.
2) Your peers. Together, you will know what is important and you will close each others' gaps in knowledge. Not to mention it makes things more fun. Get a group together every few days to quiz each other in the lab. You'll learn from the repetition and from teaching.
3) Michigan's entire anatomy website, not just the practice practicals. Use the dissection pre-lab modules, the dissection lab manual(and included short videos), the written questions, and practice practical. You could easily high pass your course completely off of that website alone.

Feel free to PM me if you have any questions! Good luck.

 

[studocplsignore]

80 people (out of 240) failed our last anatomy practical. It's not an easy course by any means but studying every day and looking at bodies helps.

 

[EnginrTheFuture]

80 people (out of 240) failed our last anatomy practical. It's not an easy course by any means but studying every day and looking at bodies helps.

1/3 of you class failed your anatomy practical? That's pretty bad. How do you guys even accommodate 240 people?!?!

 

[mcloaf]

1/3 of you class failed your anatomy practical? That's pretty bad. How do you guys even accommodate 240 people?!?!

Yeah. Failing that many students indicates the faculty ****ed up, either in their teaching or in their creation of the exam.

 

[notbobtrustme]

80 people (out of 240) failed our last anatomy practical. It's not an easy course by any means but studying every day and looking at bodies helps.

is this a US school? 1/3rd failing the practical is a massive red flag.

 

[VisionaryTics]

Let's say the prof tags the lacrimal gland.

Q: A brainstem lesion affecting the autonomic input to this structure would also affect fibers traveling through which nerve?

A. Auriculotemporal n.
B. Lingual n.
C. Greater auricular n.
D. Vagus n.
E. Short ciliary n.

Glad my question freaked everybody out.

Answer is B, for the reason the other guy (EngrTheFutr) said.

Auriculotemporal is CN9, greater auricular is a sensory nerve from cervical plexus with only sympathetics, vagus is CN10, and short ciliary nerve is sympathetics.