Case Files: Internal Medicine

Case Files

by Eugene C. Toy, John Patlan

Real-Life Cases for the Internal Medicine Clerkship and the USMLE Step 3 "...an excellent internal medicine review book written especially or medical students in their clinical years. It is perfect for clerkships, sub-internships, shelf, and USMLE exams. Sized to fit in the pocket of a white coat for easy portability, this book offers an engaging and high-yield re-view of internal medicine. It promotes active learning, using patient presentations and thought-provoking questions to encourage deeper thinking about clinical problems. The format will be comfortable for anyone who has spent time on the wards learning from patients and engaging in problem-based learning....This book is highly recommended to supplement internal medicine clerkships and sub-internships and to prepare for shelf and USMLE exams."-- Yale Journal of Biology & Medicine You need exposure to high-yield cases to excel on the Internal Medicine clerkship and the shelf-exam. Case Internal Medicine presents 60 real-life cases that illustrate essential concepts in Internal Medicine. Each case includes a complete discussion, clinical pearls, references, definitions of key terms, and USMLE-style review questions. With this system, you'll learn in the context of real patients, rather than merely memorize facts.

Genres: Medicine, Medical, Nonfiction, Textbooks

580 pages, Paperback

First published April 2, 2004

Reviews

[Melanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

(Note: this review is largely copied and pasted from my Case Files surgery review, with small changes where appropriate. I've found the Case Files series to be pretty consistent in each book's content, explanations, questions, etc.)

I really like the Case Files series for shelf exam studying. I like how each "case" is presented, and how history/physical findings, diagnostic tests, pathophysiology, and treatment are explained. I also think that the format of the Case Files books is great - each case is short enough to read over the course of only a few minutes, yet you still feel like you're actually learning as you go through the book. I carried this book around with me when I was on the floors, just in case I had a few minutes to go through a case.

My only issue with this book (and with the case files books in general) is that it doesn't include everything you need to know about medicine. It definitely lists many of the bread and butter cases, but it still doesn't cover everything you need to know for the shelf. I would suggest supplementing with another book, like Step Up to Medicine. I'm also not a huge fan of the questions at the end of each case - they seem to be more of reading comprehension questions than actual knowledge based or application of your knowledge. I would definitely recommend doing other questions in preparation for the exam (I'm a big fan of the USMLE world question bank, and the question book published for medical students by the ACP).

[Baraa Qudah · Rating 4 out of 5]

useful overview of topics on internal medicine

[Alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sixty medical cases, each followed by a section of teaching points and some review questions. IMO, this is the best style of learning-- connecting the textbook information with a "real patient" presentation. Case vignettes are also what most of the tests are based on nowadays. I actually enjoyed reading this book, and I feel that it was a good format for learning. The cases got me into the mindset of looking for the elements of the patient's history and physical exam that allow me to make the diagnosis, and find appropriate treatment options. Even more than passing tests, that's the skill that third year medical students really need to be developing.

I plan to use this book series to study for all of my rotations.

[Brood Tinirad · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a nice BROAD overview of COMMON cases seen in internal medicine. It is not meant to be an in-depth internal medicine textbook. It is a relatively quick read with a lot of good salient take home points. Good if you are looking to brush up on internal medicine. The summary points at the end of each chapter are gold.

[Zhiyar Qadri]

Good comprehensive cases!

[Nika · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing tool for someone who likes to learn from cases.

[Mostafa Khalifa · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the most useful and helpful books in understanding Internal medicine by case-based method

[Mostafa Khalifa · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the most useful books in understanding and studying internal medicine in cases based style.