Journal Article Suggestions?

[MTJ Guy]

Advertisement - Members don't see this ad

Anyone have any suggestions on where to start in reading journal articles? Is starting with the classic articles a good idea to begin a foundation for the rest? Do you have any other articles that you found to be exceptionally useful besides classic articles?

Also, what exactly do you look for in a clinical article? As in, when you are reading it, what do you think about? I have only really read into basic science research articles with binding studies etc., which seems to be significantly different than what I am beginning to read about. Any suggestions are appreciated.

Thanks!

 

[PeaJay]

Classic article are a great way to start, but you need/should be reading modern articles concurrently.

What I found to work was to start with bread and butter procedures such as a bunion. First read a chapter in Easley or Chang for a cook book style description of how to do the procedure and get some quick facts. Utilize the references to find classic/old articles and then read them critically. This means that you look for any and all flaws: what was the population size, what was the protocol pre/post-op, what was the followup, how were outcomes measures, did the data support the conclusion, is the author justified in drawing the conclusions that they did, ect. After digesting a few classics do a pubmed search and just start going to town reading. You are less likely to be pimped on new lit so you do not have to spend as much time digesting each article. Just make a solid pass and try to understand the idea the paper was trying to test. Shear volume will give you repetition of classic concepts and fast facts in the intro and then you may be able to learn something from the study if it is worth while.

Then rinse and repeat.

No one is expecting you to know everything, but you should read about stuff as you see it out on the road. This process is about learning. Programs should expect you to work hard and grown, not be an encyclopedia. With that being said, being well read does not hurt.

 

[josebiwasabi]

I suggest reading review articles and current conceps reviews for all of the most common pathologies. They reference a lot of studies when they go over different treatment option so you get a good overview of all the treatment modalities and controversies.

 

[SandersCalc]

I suggest reading review articles and current conceps reviews for all of the most common pathologies. They reference a lot of studies when they go over different treatment option so you get a good overview of all the treatment modalities and controversies.

Where are the best places to look for current concept reviews?

 

[g squared 23]

It depends on where you are as a student. If you're brand new, you need to be reading and memorizing details of every classic article that you can get your hands on. If you're about to start residency, you can start focusing on techniques, and Dr. Chang's textbook is a great place to start. You should also start thinking about what I call "surgical anatomy": what anatomical structures will be encountered as we dissect through each specific pathway, as well as anatomic relationships/orientations and details.

I don't recommend students read any of the brand new articles being churned out because 95% of it is absolute garbage. It is so very low yield, and it'll be more confusing than helpful to most students. The only use for the current literature is the bibliography; this can be a way to find those so-called classic landmark articles.

Students also need to be thoroughly familiar with any and all literature of the attendings they will be working with out on their rotations. This is important to get a general sense of their philosophy and interests, and to avoid asking questions that could come off as juvenile or stupid.

 

[g squared 23]

Where are the best places to look for current concept reviews?

Foot and Ankle Clinics, and Clinics in Podiatric Medicine and Surgery are all review articles. Each edition covers one general topic. I believe they are published quarterly? High enough yield for a student, although it does depend on who authors each particular article: some of them are resident written, and therefore lack any clinical pearls or real depth that comes with real world experience on the subject. Usually at least good as a resource to find the landmark articles in the works cited section, but sometimes nothing more than a resident book report.

 

[AttackNME]

I'd like to echo those that have posted previously. The Clinics series are great review/summary articles. It's like a condensed version of mcglamry's chapters to me. Read those for an overview. If you are about to scrub a case and you know what the case is, i'd suggest reading Chang's

 

[josebiwasabi]

Where are the best places to look for current concept reviews?

I absolutely agree with the above, F&A Clinics and Clinics in Pod Med & Surg are great reviews. keep in mind they aren't research articles, so they aren't level 1 evidence or anything like that. Also, another good source are Current Concept Reviews in Foot and Ankle International. They is slightly dated because they were mostly published from 2005-2010 but most of the info is still relevant.

 

[ldsrmdude]

Agree with what's been said. Personally, if a student ever asks, I usually tell them not to worry much about journal articles at all, but to spend their time reading a textbook (Coughlin & Mann or McGlamry) and look at either Easley or Chang (I personally think Easley is better) for reviewing for a case. If you have a presentation to give or a paper to write on a specific topic, then look at all the articles on that topic, but otherwise, as a student, like gsquared23 said, they're usually pretty low-yield.

 

[PeaJay]

Agree with what's been said. Personally, if a student ever asks, I usually tell them not to worry much about journal articles at all, but to spend their time reading a textbook (Coughlin & Mann or McGlamry) and look at either Easley or Chang (I personally think Easley is better) for reviewing for a case. If you have a presentation to give or a paper to write on a specific topic, then look at all the articles on that topic, but otherwise, as a student, like gsquared23 said, they're usually pretty low-yield.

I would have to agree, Easley is a much better read.