USMLE Step 2 Audio Crash Course

Preface This USMLE step II Course is designed to provide information regarding clinical subjects that are tested as part of the USMLE II examination. This includes the study and practice of internal medicine, preventative care, obstetrics, gynecology, ophthalmology, psychiatry, dermatology, sports medicine, pediatrics, emergency medicine, and radiology. Each topic is designed to cover the common clinical diseases associated with these medical specialties, including their treatment. Medical students are expected to understand the causes of disease, risk factors, and treatment. The more theoretical topics of ethics, biostatistics, and epidemiology will also be discussed as part of this course.

The focus of chapter one is internal medicine, which is a broad subject involving the care of adult patients with problems related to the heart, lungs, kidneys, brain, endocrine system, and gastrointestinal tract. While there are hundreds of possible illnesses an adult can have, the internist will deal primarily with common diseases affecting adult patient in an internal medicine clinic.

Chapter two discusses preventive medicine. Preventive medicine involves evaluations, screening tests, and recommendations that are intended to decrease the incidence of a disease before it occurs, identify disease in high risk patients, and decrease the complication rates of disease the patient may already have. The use of preventive medicine applies to patients of all ages.

Chapter three in the course involves the various dermatological conditions that an internist deals with on a regular basis. The skin is the largest organ of the body with hundreds of possible disorders and manifestations of disease elsewhere in the body. The main focus of this chapter includes benign skin lesions, skin cancers, acne, and less common skin-related conditions.

Chapter four in the course discusses various types of surgeries and surgical techniques seen in a variety of surgical fields. While many surgeons are general surgeons, some surgical specialties focus on certain areas of surgery, such as orthopedic surgery, neurosurgery, and gynecological surgery. This chapter will cover some of the most common surgical techniques utilized in the surgical realm.

The focus of chapter five in the course is sports medicine. The provider involved in sports medicine will deal with healthy or “normal” patients that seek assistance to lose weight or become more fit. They will also deal with common sports-related injuries, in particular, musculoskeletal injuries, mild traumatic brain injuries, and major injuries. The use of anabolic steroids is covered in this chapter as this is a common problem in among competitive athletes.

Chapter six covers common ENT (Ear, Nose, and Throat) conditions. These types of disorders are common in any emergency department and general practice clinic. Providers need to understand the most common diseases of the head and neck including acute diseases and infections, as well as chronic ENT problems. Head and neck cancers are usually managed by the ENT specialist but can be diagnosed by any provider of older adults, so these are included as part of the discussion.

The topic of chapter seven is pediatrics and the different pediatric conditions that might be seen by the primary care physician. Many children do not have access to pediatricians and are seen by the general practitioner for most of their medical needs. Caring for children involves caring for their acute and chronic conditions so this will be the focus of this chapter.