What textbooks should I study?

[aetwsslol]

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Hi, this question is for current med students. To the best of my understanding, anatomy seems to be much of a rote-memorization class, and it seems to be regarded as one of the more difficult classes for a med school freshman. I'm currently a high school junior, and I'm wondering what textbooks I can take a look at and read just for fun in order to be more prepared when the time comes around. Any suggestions for self-study for med school classes that don't require prior, specialized knowledge would be welcome as well.

Thanks,

JL

 

[Copernicium]

While you may be eager for med school, how about you start with getting through high school and undergrad first? Also, if you're looking for med student advice, you're in the wrong forum.

 

[HH Holmes]

I'm currently a high school junior, and I'm wondering what textbooks I can take a look at and read just for fun in order to be more prepared when the time comes around.

I'm all for reading, and science and such... But textbooks, for fun? If you're looking for anatomy and physiology stuff, just buy a simple anatomy book. I bought a very cool one from the Bodies Exhibit in NYC when I visited called "Rapid Review: Anatomy Review Guide". The book has the anatomy of every major (and minor) system, but there is a transparency with all the labels on every page, that way you can look at the labels and quiz yourself by flipping over the transparency.

http://www.amazon.com/Rapid-Review-Anatomy-Reference-Guide/dp/B0009VKYB0

It's almost 50 bucks on Amazon. I bought it for 30 at the exhibit, but if you're into A&P, it may be worth your money. Or find it used.

These books, by no means, will prepare you for medical school, or even the science classes in undergraduate. If medical school was solely based on books, diagrams and reading the University of Phoenix would offer an MD program.

 

[r0ckaction]

Hi, this question is for current med students. To the best of my understanding, anatomy seems to be much of a rote-memorization class, and it seems to be regarded as one of the more difficult classes for a med school freshman. I'm currently a high school junior, and I'm wondering what textbooks I can take a look at and read just for fun in order to be more prepared when the time comes around. Any suggestions for self-study for med school classes that don't require prior, specialized knowledge would be welcome as well.

Thanks,

JL

The human body is absolutely fascinating and I think it's awesome that you are already interested in learning what you can. That being said, you will have trouble finding a medical school textbook (or an undergrad text for that matter) that doesn't require a certain amount of "prior, specialized knowledge." The authors generally assume a basic knowledge of biology & chemistry that you will attain during your first few years of college.
The books that we use tend to fall into one of three categories; an atlas - which is basically just pictures with little or no text to explain what you are looking at or why it is important, a true "textbook" that will be ridiculously dense and have way more detailed explanations than you could ever want, and finally - a dissector, a book that we use in the anatomy lab while doing dissections that has instructions and images to guide the whole process of dissecting a cadaver.
My advice would be to head over to your local bookstore and poke around the medical reference section to flip through some of the books and see what they're all about. I believe you will find that the textbooks (if they have any) are exceptionally dense and rather dry. You will also find that the books are terribly expensive.
If you decide you want to buy a textbook, I would pick one geared towards college anatomy and physiology instead of a medical school book. It will be more general, it will contain more information discussing the actual workings of the organ systems you are looking at, and most importantly it will be more readable without a pot of coffee in hand. Perhaps ask one of your science teachers if they know of any good ones. Honestly, if you sat down to read through the textbook we use at my school I'm pretty sure you would be so bored you'd never go into medicine 😉 They tend to be very dense.
One last word of advice, and i'm not saying you're doing this at all, just a word of warning - don't blow off or just scoot by the other topics you are studying because they don't seem to be directly related to medicine. You would be surprised just how important it really is to understand the basics of chemistry, physics, biology, and math. Right now and when you get to college you are/will be building a foundation that will dictate how well and how easily you can understand the world of medical science. Acids and bases will come back again and again, logarithms will stick around, even the writing skills you hone in English classes will be essential in the future. Try to look at everything you're studying right now as being direct preparation for the future - because it totally is.

PS - Gray's Anatomy (the classic textbook from 1918, not the TV show) is available online and for free, but I found a hardcopy of it on sale one time for $5.00 and couldn't pass up owning "a piece of history". Here's the link...
http://www.bartleby.com/107/

 

[md88jd98]

Try the gross anatomy Made Ridiculously Simple book. The Made Ridiculously Simple series includes microbiology, pathology, endocrinology, etc. There is some oversimplication but these are easy to understand, to memorize and are very readable (sort of like Clift Notes). They are cheap, especially if bought used. Hahaha

 

[FutureDoc01]

Try Gray's Anatomy for Students. I think its a much nicer text!

 

[aetwsslol]

thanks for all the advice. copernicium, i'm just trying to get a head start; there's nothing wrong with that.

 

[Gigantron]

OP, read this: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=730701&highlight=textbook

That being said, there is no way that you'll get a "head start" by reading medical textbooks. You'll only confuse yourself even further.

 

[katarina90]

yeah...I would second "Micro made ridiculously simple"...that actually does look like it could be fun, and I have always thought micro is a much more accessible topic than anatomy, physiology, or--ugh--neuroscience.

If you want something more heavily academic, go for a good intro bio text such as "Life: The Science of Biology", its a good foundation for undergraduate bio students.

I have to agree as someone who just finished first year...nobody can really articulate exactly how med school is, or how to prepare for it. Its something you have to figure out when you're there. Really, I feel like yesterday I woke up from a nine-month long bad dream filled with monotony, mediocre coffee, and endless utterances of "chorda tympani".

For fun reads that can actually teach you something, I'd go for "Sex on the Brain", "Mean Genes", and if you're into psych at all, "Against Depression", "Listening to Prozac" or other books by Peter D. Kramer. They briefly delve into psychopharmacology but it is done in an accessible way.

 

[PlAnEjaNe]

If medical school was solely based on books, diagrams and reading the University of Phoenix would offer an MD program.

LOL. If only you knew....that is ALL what med school is. I think I've spent a total of 20-30 hours in class/labs for first/sec yr and that was mostly due to the stupid mandatory classes. I started out going to anatomy/histo lab first semester but then that faded quickly when I realized how much time I was wasting dissecting, so I would just show up the last hour and look at all the bodies and actually LEARN rather than perform as a part-time butcher for 3-4hrs. Histo I think I went the first week then discovered histotime and that was the end of that.

second year I only showed up for exams and whatever lec/lab was mandatory outside of the x# of misses before your grade started to really tank.

Really, med school is all about reading, reading, reading. I still can't figure out what the hell people got out of going to class. whatever the lec said was in a book and I could read it and comprehend it 2x as fast as they could talk about it and show it in their stupid ppt. slides.


If you want an anatomy book I would just buy an intro type book, NOT netters or grays, save that for later. Just pick up something with pretty pictures and nice explanations without too much detail.

 

[HH Holmes]

LOL. If only you knew....that is ALL what med school is. I think I've spent a total of 20-30 hours in class/labs for first/sec yr and that was mostly due to the stupid mandatory classes. I started out going to anatomy/histo lab first semester but then that faded quickly when I realized how much time I was wasting dissecting, so I would just show up the last hour and look at all the bodies and actually LEARN rather than perform as a part-time butcher for 3-4hrs. Histo I think I went the first week then discovered histotime and that was the end of that.

second year I only showed up for exams and whatever lec/lab was mandatory outside of the x# of misses before your grade started to really tank.

I'm not saying for the lecture portions, but wouldn't you agree that labs such as anatomy are crucial to the rotations in the 3rd and 4th years? Of course anyone can study on their own and do it more efficiently than a classroom setting, but I doubt you dump a cadaver and a book on a table and a 2nd year med student can point out every single organ, structure, duct etc...

 

[katarina90]

I'm not saying for the lecture portions, but wouldn't you agree that labs such as anatomy are crucial to the rotations in the 3rd and 4th years? Of course anyone can study on their own and do it more efficiently than a classroom setting, but I doubt you dump a cadaver and a book on a table and a 2nd year med student can point out every single organ, structure, duct etc...

Umm, YEAH. At least for my experience.

Anatomy lab wasn't super-useful as I spent more dissecting than learning (though that largely depends on your lab group and the direction you are given by the professors).

And you don't need to really know everything (every little bone marking, etc.) But you better know the difference between the phrenic and vagus nerves, which lung has a lingula (even when its taken out of the thoracic cavity and set on a table by itself), and what are in all four chambers of the heart.

Histo lab was OK. We were looking at pre-prepared slides and I thought it was semi-helpful but nothing you can't look at in a histo book or on the CD that comes with it.

But...try learning how to do an HEENT exam by yourself with just a textbook. I don't think it would work so well...

You have the right idea, JChait. Anyone who thinks this could be an online course is kidding themself. There are labs for physical diagnosis as well where you learn how to use a fundoscope for an ophtho exam or find the cone of light in the ear. I don't think I could have taught that to myself. To have an attending stand next to you as you check reflexes on your partner and explain that you're a little too high on the patellar tendon is essential to doing things correctly. </rant>

 

[235009]

haven't read many of the responses but thought i'd chip in with a bit of crucial advice...

success in many careers isn't just based on what you know. med school is no different. there is a very big social component ...whether it's interacting with colleagues or patients. as a high school junior the BEST thing you can do to prepare for med school is work on your social skills ....every friday night you are sitting at home infront of an anatomy text book will be a complete waste.

If you get to med school and you don't know anything about the human body you will be able to learn that (trust me) but if you show up and u are lacking in interpersonal skills that will hold you back for the rest of your career and by age 21-24 it's too late to do anything about it

 

[AntiHouseMD]

Don't worry about any medical stuff right now. You're in high school, for my sake. skinMD has good advice on working on your social skills. It does help. For example, my voice and way of talking sucks. I'm going to work on that over the summer. More importantly, though, just work hard for your high school classes and enjoy life right now. This is a period of your life where you don't want to look back and think you wasted it. Join a club that you enjoy, pick up a new sport, or hang out with friends. There is plenty of time to learn medicine, but there isn't enough to enjoy life as a teenager.

 

[sineapse]

Hi, this question is for current med students. To the best of my understanding, anatomy seems to be much of a rote-memorization class, and it seems to be regarded as one of the more difficult classes for a med school freshman. I'm currently a high school junior, and I'm wondering what textbooks I can take a look at and read just for fun in order to be more prepared when the time comes around. Any suggestions for self-study for med school classes that don't require prior, specialized knowledge would be welcome as well.

Thanks,

JL

Mystery Method

 

[PlAnEjaNe]

Umm, YEAH. At least for my experience.

Anatomy lab wasn't super-useful as I spent more dissecting than learning (though that largely depends on your lab group and the direction you are given by the professors).

And you don't need to really know everything (every little bone marking, etc.) But you better know the difference between the phrenic and vagus nerves, which lung has a lingula (even when its taken out of the thoracic cavity and set on a table by itself), and what are in all four chambers of the heart.

Histo lab was OK. We were looking at pre-prepared slides and I thought it was semi-helpful but nothing you can't look at in a histo book or on the CD that comes with it.

But...try learning how to do an HEENT exam by yourself with just a textbook. I don't think it would work so well...

You have the right idea, JChait. Anyone who thinks this could be an online course is kidding themself. There are labs for physical diagnosis as well where you learn how to use a fundoscope for an ophtho exam or find the cone of light in the ear. I don't think I could have taught that to myself. To have an attending stand next to you as you check reflexes on your partner and explain that you're a little too high on the patellar tendon is essential to doing things correctly. </rant>

Well, I never said it could be an online course but certainly the first and second year could be independent study less a lab here or there (which is supported by the fact that some schools offer an independent study track for the first 2 years with the only obligation of taking the exams and attending the req labs). As far as the diagnostic exams etc. go, really that for me was learned just by repetition and often times I had no one to practice on so I would just visualize in my head and then once I got to school prior to the exam I would grab a classmate for a couple of hours and practice it on them. Of course, we'll see how good (or bad) my skills are as I start 3rd year next week! I'll let you know how that strategy worked out. Either way, rotations will be the most important for actually learning skills whereas the knowledge comes from the books (or the lec if you're that person).


also, the only reason anatomy is difficult in med school is because it is thrown in the mix along with biochem, histo, physio, immuno, embryo, micro, neuro, etc. it becomes a volume issue not a content issue.

 

[sineapse]

Of course, we'll see how good (or bad) my skills are as I start 3rd year next week! I'll let you know how that strategy worked out.

I'll tell you now, for free. Your examination skills are crappy. You haven't practised them on enough sick people.

Good news is, this will improve with time.

 

[PlAnEjaNe]

I'll tell you now, for free. Your examination skills are crappy. You haven't practised them on enough sick people.

Good news is, this will improve with time.

I haven't practiced them on any sick people, that's the whole point of second year, to LEARN how to examine a NORMAL person (and I did very well on all of my standardized patient exams so I think I can perform a diagnostic exam competently). This way when you get to third year you can translate what a normal presents as into what an abnormal presents as. The entire point of third year is to build upon those diagnostic skills learned in second year.

Also, some people are better at picking up these skills than others, in my class there are people that practiced and rehearsed 10x more than me but their skills still suck 2x as bad, then there are those that never practice and walk in and do it perfectly...I hate those poeple It has a great deal to do with comfort level and it took me a while to get there but once I did, I didn't have to put nearly as much work into it.

 

[katarina90]

Well, I never said it could be an online course but certainly the first and second year could be independent study less a lab here or there (which is supported by the fact that some schools offer an independent study track for the first 2 years with the only obligation of taking the exams and attending the req labs). As far as the diagnostic exams etc. go, really that for me was learned just by repetition and often times I had no one to practice on so I would just visualize in my head and then once I got to school prior to the exam I would grab a classmate for a couple of hours and practice it on them. Of course, we'll see how good (or bad) my skills are as I start 3rd year next week! I'll let you know how that strategy worked out. Either way, rotations will be the most important for actually learning skills whereas the knowledge comes from the books (or the lec if you're that person).


also, the only reason anatomy is difficult in med school is because it is thrown in the mix along with biochem, histo, physio, immuno, embryo, micro, neuro, etc. it becomes a volume issue not a content issue.

lol very true. I do see your point, there are upwards of 40 hrs a week of lecture, it is super hard to attend everything.

*edit: sorry i seemed as though i was referring to you in my post when i said it could be an online course...that was actually in reference to comments some of my classmates have made (scarily, they are serious)

I guess what i was trying to say there is that when in doubt, its better to err on the side of attending lecture. Its better to attend lectures and find out halfway through the block that you're an independent learner than to not attend lectures, get halfway through the block and realize that you were one of those people that really needed to go there to get it. (seen that one happen way too much).

For me I started realizing that I actually DID benefit from a lot of the lectures if i was prepared by previewing it beforehand. It really cut down on the amount of study time and became much more efficient for me to learn stuff by reading it, hearing it, and then being active about it by taking notes.

ps. I have chiropractors and NPs at my school so it was horrible when I had to perform a physical right after them...haha that's a tough act to follow

 

[NickNaylor]

These are the textbooks you should study:

You're not even in college yet. You're a little ahead of yourself.