Mnemonics are extremely useful in learning the details of medicine, especially when there are “lists of key causes” to remember. These lists are often on written and clinical exams and medical board tests (such as National Boards and PANCE, Nursing Boards), so it is incumbent on the student to know them well. After a while, the use of mnemonics will become easy.
This book contains over 200 “easy to recall” mnemonics and other pearls that will aid the student in grasping important lists of differential diagnoses concerning common medical problems. I have chosen the most common internal medicine problems in 13 main categories.
The sheer volume of facts to learn and memorize in the study of Medicine can be daunting. Double boarded in both Internal Medicine and Infectious Diseases, I have been teaching clinical adult medicine to students for over 30 years (Medical, Physician Assistant, and Nursing) and it is not unusual for us to deal with 25 different diagnoses while on daily hospital rounds. I teach the students the importance of having a “differential diagnosis” of a medical problem at their fingertips.
Each mnemonic has an associated picture which will help you to visually engrain it in your mind. A keypoint is included with the mnemonic for 'KEY POINT' emphasis.
I have included my “Triples, Tetrads, and Pentads” and other charts to help you review the numerous 'pearls of medicine'.
-Robert M. Gullberg, M.D., F.A.C.P.
