Neuroanatomy misery ...

[Paws]

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Ok, I have been reading about the anatomy miseries of the first years, and now I would like to add my miseries about neuro for second years. What's my gripe? it's about twice (at least!) as much material and it come flying at you like cows in a tornado. Our exams have almost 200 questions and they are killers -

Any people out there have tips for digesting this stuff in a reasonable manner? or should I just give up the 'reasonable' part and give up any hope of understanding the stuff and just memorize and pray I can get out in one piece? This is I think, our hardest block yet.

Paws is worn down by this stuff ... 🙁

 

[Rendar5]

Martin's neuroanatomy is working for me. I also did all of Sidman and Sidman workbook. And neuroanatomy is still hurting my brain 🙂 stupid pathways that u just have to remember the names of since u can't actually really see them, grrr....

 

[Mike59]

Make it "ridiculously simple" then layer on the details afterward... 😉

 

[Paws]

Thanks guys for these ideas. I will check the two books out and see if they help. The 'ridiculously simple' one sounds about right for me now. I keep thinking I should be understanding this stuff when maybe I just need to memorize what I need to know and that's it. Just get through and pass. Our exams are like long distance marathons and I can hardly even finish them. This stuff is so hard - plus the volume is about twice (or more?) than we had last year. Argh ! 🙁

 

[TruTrooper]

I suggest grabbing High-Yield Neuroanatomy and keeping it forever. It is great and good for a quick pre-test run-down.

Also, once you have a great atlas with cross-sections, fill in with some notes and go over some of it every single day even if it is only a few pages. Keep reviewing over and over until you know the anatomy cold.

Draw the major tracts from memory often, concentrating on one tract at a time. I found it helpful to imagine the tracts as electrical extension cords running into different rooms on its way to and fro the attic (brain)...The points of synaspe is where to electrical cords meet because the cord isn't long enough to make it all the way to the attic so once it makes its way to the master bedroom or seconnd floor bathroom, it must be connected to another cord...it worked for me, at least.

As is most of 1st year's material, the material is vunerable to much repitition to bring it to its knees.

 

[njbmd]

Hi there,
I liked Neurology and Neurosurgery in the same book. It was easy to read and the information was presented in easy to digest form. I also liked High Yield Neuroscience. It really made the pathways easy. The first book has lots of great clinical pearls too.

Good luck. This stuff starts to just click and then you can take off.

njbmd 🙂

 

[Blake]

I had neurology in first year and did very well on the exam. The above advices are good but I have a few suggestions. ''Neuroanatomy through clinical cases'' by Blumenfeld is a great book and you should try to get your hands on a copy. It was really helpful for neuroanatomy in my case. It also has plenty of clinical cases well-explained and detailed, so you can practice a lot and be prepared for your exam regardless of its difficulty.

Like some others also said : repetition is a big part of the key. Also try to picture the brain as an electrical system with plenty of wires and batteries (if that makes any sense to you). Good luck. 😳

 

[MeowMix]

neuro was brutal for me. My best faculty advisor told me she also struggled with it as a student, and that it was like trying to memorize a phone book. All those wretched grey and black things on cross-section.

I would like to recommend conceptual understanding etc., but the truth is the only way I passed that course was through brute memorization off flashcards and atlas cross-sections, with all the other coursework that semester. If I had had more time, I might have been able to do it another way.

I do recommend this website, which is straightforward, logical, well organized, and excellent. It should have enough detail for the neuroanatomy part.
http://thalamus.wustl.edu/course/

 

[bulletproof]

Personally I had a much tougher time with gross, but to each their own. I used HY neuro along with Duane E. Haines neuro Atlas, and found this combo worked well for me. I am just finishing up reviewing for the boards and it was nice to be reviewing sources I was well acquainted with. With things like neuro I find that drawing out cross sections of the spinal cord, and filling in tracts, decussations etc. works well. Also as there is a mountain of material I would check with FA...if it is in there it is absolutely must know. If not, then you can afford to be more selective, and add that material to your knowledge fund after the really important stuff is learned cold. Good luck.

 

[Rendar5]

I liked HY for embryo. But I've seen them get stuff just completely and utterly wrong in their neuro book. I'd trust BRS more if u wanna go for a minimalist approach to the subject.

Personally I had a much tougher time with gross, but to each their own. I used HY neuro along with Duane E. Haines neuro Atlas, and found this combo worked well for me. I am just finishing up reviewing for the boards and it was nice to be reviewing sources I was well acquainted with. With things like neuro I find that drawing out cross sections of the spinal cord, and filling in tracts, decussations etc. works well. Also as there is a mountain of material I would check with FA...if it is in there it is absolutely must know. If not, then you can afford to be more selective, and add that material to your knowledge fund after the really important stuff is learned cold. Good luck.

 

[bulletproof]

I liked HY for embryo. But I've seen them get stuff just completely and utterly wrong in their neuro book. I'd trust BRS more if u wanna go for a minimalist approach to the subject.

I believe its Dr. Fix. I have not encountered any significant errors to date, at least none that have prevented me from scoring well on the anatomy section on Qbank. Also, yeah it is a minimalist approach, precisely because by the time the end of second year rolls around with all the path, pharm and micro crammed in there, you really want to retain the key things....can you pick out AICA on an arteriogram, irrigation of the brain, reading CTs, stroke, tracts etc. Until I finished year 2 my knowledge seemed fragmented, but after you finish path and pharm, all other subjects tend to make more sense as you have studied aspects of them from more, and varied angles. Btw I have BRS, and it is good perhaps to explain things while taking the course, but I would be happier knowing the HY 90% than the finer points of BRS 50%. To each their own.

 

[Rendar5]

I might be biased more towards non-HY for neuroanatomy because I tried to use it to give me a quick idea of the trigeminal system, and they totally screwed it up and gave me no real info at all =p. So I prefer BRS minimalism to HY minimalism for this one subject. everything else, go HY!

I believe its Dr. Fix. I have not encountered any significant errors to date, at least none that have prevented me from scoring well on the anatomy section on Qbank. Also, yeah it is a minimalist approach, precisely because by the time the end of second year rolls around with all the path, pharm and micro crammed in there, you really want to retain the key things....can you pick out AICA on an arteriogram, irrigation of the brain, reading CTs, stroke, tracts etc. Until I finished year 2 my knowledge seemed fragmented, but after you finish path and pharm, all other subjects tend to make more sense as you have studied aspects of them from more, and varied angles. Btw I have BRS, and it is good perhaps to explain things while taking the course, but I would be happier knowing the HY 90% than the finer points of BRS 50%. To each their own.

 

[Paws]

neuro was brutal for me. My best faculty advisor told me she also struggled with it as a student, and that it was like trying to memorize a phone book. All those wretched grey and black things on cross-section.
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Wow, MeowMix, this is my feeling exactly. And our notes are like, "what the heck are you talking about?" kind of hierogliphics. I am not so good with memorizing stuff I just don't understand and our professor seems to have decided to just put the most important stuff in the lecture notes, but then, of course that leaves our all the other stuff that actually explains what is going on.

Ok, I know I am rambling but I feel frazzled and mad. Also, thank you Blake! I love the Blumenfeld book and just bought my second copy. I originally wanted to use it for the course but was told: no, too much material you will never need it so I returned it. But as I look through the pages, holy *&^% I see everything we have been seeing on exams beautifully illustrated and written out in wonderful style. And Dr. Blumefeld is there in his yarmulke in the neurology pictures. Sweet!

Lesson: listen to your instincts. I am going to go see a tutor and also work my way through this really beautful neuroanatomy book by Blumenfeld. This book should be assigned reading at least for our class. It is all right there. 👍

Thanks everyone for these awesome comments. I feel alot less alone in my neuro misery!

 

[quideam]

We're about halfway through our neuro course right now; here's what's been working pretty well for me so far:

- Blumenfeld's book for cases, figures, and thorough details
- Kingsley "Neuroscience" for an excellent, succinct overview of important information - great as a prep before jumping into Blumenfeld
- HY Neuroanatomy - definetely; not enough info for tests, etc., but helps to at least give you the 'bigger picture' once you know the details; also, points out the really important stuff to try and remember for the boards.

 

[dara678]

Hi,

I liked neuro but I agree it can get hard. I would suggest geting a book called "basic clinical neuroanatomy" by young and young. It's a very short textbook that simplies everything and lays it out straight for you -- it has all the detail you need to do well on an exam AND understand it yet it still keeps it short and concise. I loved that book and I have to say it helped me do reasonably well.

Other than that ... draw, memorize, draw, memorize some more, draw some more, and then memorize. That's the only way through it.

 

[marooner]

hello! neuroscience is really hard. i looked through the thread to see on what book to buy, but i guess even you guys can't agree on one book. maybe because it depends on the person on how he takes neuro...

oh btw, isn't the neuro part of certain physio books, like guyton, enough? i would really like to change now on the second part of our neuro, wouldn't guyton be enough?

 

[Rendar5]

guyton good for neuro?i doubt it. It's such a huge subject too. multiple textbooks is teh way to go (one for neuroanatomy, one for overall neurology). BRS is a fair bet too.

 

[disheveled_dave]

If you have the time, I highly recommend Sidman & Sidman. Its format is pretty much fill-in-the-blank or make a quick drawing, and it absolutely hammers the information into your head. There are about 1300 questions, so it takes a fair amount of time, but it has been the most successful (and least painful) memorization I have ever done.

Good luck

 

[Rendar5]

I did Sidman & Sidman and loved it, but i still had to go through martin in various areas

 

[MSHell]

I feel your pain. wtf is up with neuro 😕 Gross was a breeze compared to this crap. I want it to end. Nothing is making sense. I am using multiple textbooks trying to get the big picture. It's not working. I guess I'll take previous suggestions and draw, memorize, draw, memorize... ad nauseum.