Académique Documents
Professionnel Documents
Culture Documents
A-P-G-A-R:
A - appearance (color)
P - pulse (heart rate)
G - grimmace (reflex, irritability)
A - activity (muscle tone)
R - respiratory effort
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Predisposing Conditions for Pulmonary Embolism: TOM SCHREPFER
T--trauma
O--obesity
M--malignancy
S--surgery
C--cardiac disease
H--hospitalization
R--rest (bed-bound)
E--estrogen, pregnancy, post-partum
P--past hx
F--fracture
E--elderly
R--road trip
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The 4 P's of arterial Occlusion: pain pallor pulselessness paresthesias
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Oxyhemoglobin Dissociation Curve:
Think of exercising muscle for a rightward shift: Exercising
muscle is Hot, Acidic (Lactic Acid), Hypercarbic, Benefits from
oxygen unloading and has an increased 2,3 DPG. Also think Bohr
effect with a rightward shift(_CO2 = _O2). Realize that the
Haldane effect means (O2 =CO2 carried by Hgb).
Argyll-Robertson Pupil:
"Prostitute's Eye" - accommodates but does not react, pathognomonic of 3ry syphilis
Felty's Syndrome:
Felty's syndrome is the arthritis in which the spleen can be felty!
WBC Count:
"Nobody Likes My Educational Background"
"60, 30, 6, 3, 1"
Neutrophils 60%
Lymphocytes 30%
Monocytes 6%
Eosinophils 3%
Basophils 1:
Causes of pancytopenia:
"All my blood has taken some poison"
Aplastic anemias
Megaloblastic anemias
Bone marrow infiltration
Hypersplenism
TB
SLE
Paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria
Walk: deep venous thrombosis can develop due to pelvic pooling or restricted
mobility related to pain and fatigue.
Position patient sitting up with legs dangling over the side of the bed. This facilitates
respiration and reduces venous return.
Causes of hematuria
Use the mnemonic SITTT as an aid in evaluating the cause of hematuria:
S: Stone
I: Infection
T: Trauma
T: Tumor
T: Tuberculosis
Symptoms of hyperthyroidism
Remember the following mnemonic when evaluating patients for hyperthyroidism:
S: Sweating
T: Tremor or Tachycardia
I: Intolerance to heat, Irregular menstruation, and Irritability
N: Nervousness
G: Goiter and Gastrointestinal (loose stools/diarrhea).
Allopurinol: indications
STORE:
Stones (history of renal stones)
Tophaceous gout (chronic)
Over-producers of urate
Renal disease
Elderly
· Bonus: Probenecid indications are basically the opposite of STORE (no renal stone
history, etc.).
Eosinophilia: differential
NAACP:
Neoplasm
Allergy/ Asthma
Addison's disease
Collagen vascular diseases
Parasites
Hypoglycaemia: causes
"How to EXPLAIN hypoglycemia":
EXogenous drugs (insulin, oral hypoglycemics, alcohol, pentamidine, quinine,
quinolones)
Pituitary insufficency (no GH or cortisol)
Liver failure (no glycogen stores)
Adrenal failure (no cortisol)
Insulinomas/ Immune hypoglycemia
Non-pancreatic neoplasms (retroperitoneal sarcoma)
Dyspnea: differential
3A's: Three Airways: Airway obstruction, Anaphylaxis, Asthma
3P's: Three Pulmonary's: Pneumothorax, PE, Pulmonary edema
3C's: Three Cardiacs: Cardiogenic pulmonary edema, Cardiac ischemia, Cardiac
tamponade
3M's: Three Metabolics: (DOC) DKA, Organophosphates, Carbon monoxide
poisoning
Coma: differential
UNCONSCIOUS:
Units of insulin
Narcotics
Convulsions
Oxygen
Nonorganic
Stroke
Cocktail
ICP
Organism
Urea
Shock
Shock: types
RN CHAMPS:
Respiratory
Neurogenic
Cardiogenic
Hemorrhagic
Anaphylactic
Metabolic
Psychogenic
Septic
· Alternatively: "MR. C.H. SNAP", or "NH CRAMPS".
Ventricular fibrillation: treatment
"Shock, Shock, Shock, Everybody Shock, Little Shock, Big Shock, Momma Shock,
Poppa Shock":
Shock= Defibrillate
Everybody= Epinephine
Little= Lidocaine
Big= Bretylium
Momma= MgSO4
Poppa= Pocainamide
Pneumothorax: causes
SIT, 3 A's, 3 C's:
Spontaneous (often tall thin men)
Iatrogenic
Trauma
Asthma
Alveolitis
AIDS
COPD
Carcinoma
Cystic fibrosis
Using the 3 first letter method for cranial bones: Ethel, the Parakeet, is Temporarily
Occupied in Front of the Sphinx. Ethmoid, Parietal, Temporal, Occipital, Frontal,
Sphenoid.
Another 3 first letter method for the cranial sutures: Saggy Lambs Squash the
Coroner. Sagittal, Lambdoid, Squamous and Coronal.
Cancers
College Food
Students reciting College Lunch is Best or College boys Love Breasts know that 50%
of cancers arise in three organs: Colon, Lungs, Breast.
4 Cancer Types
An easy way to relate four types of cancer to their cells of origin:
Sarcoma means cancer of the muscle, and is found in Connective and Muscle tissues.
(C, M are letters in sarCoMa)
Carcinoma is cancer of epithelial tissue, and found in stomach and Intestines
Lymphoma & Leukemia are cancers of blood Leukocytes and Lymphocytes
Miscellaneous Brain Facts
Groups of nerve cell bodies are nuclei if they're in the CNS, and ganglia if in the
peripheral nervous system. I remember the nuclei are in the CNS because they both
have the letter C.
Grey matter is central to white matter in the spinal cord, because the white stuff is fat
wrapped around and protecting the grey nerves.
What's the significance of glial cells? They nourish neurons, keep them from falling
down, and provide tunnels for axons to route. In another perspective: Albert Einstein's
brain had 30% more glial cells than average.
Four types of glial cells are ependymal, astrocytes, oligodendrocytes, and microglia.
The mnemonic phrase is Every Asshole Owes Money.
RENAL
1. HUS/TTP
HUS/TTP is a CRAFTY syndrome:
C : CNS symptoms
R : Renal failure
A : Anemia (microangiopathic hemolytic anemia, "MAHA")
F : Fever
T : Thrombocytopenia
Y : no one knows "Y" it occurs
2. Normal anion gap acidosis
There's the older mnemonic USED CAR:
U : uterosigmoidostomy
S : saline administration (in the face of renal dysfunction)
E : endocrine (Addisons, spironolactone, triamterene, amiloride,
primary hyperparathyroidism)
D : diarrhea
C : carbonic anhydrase inhibitors
A : ammonium chloride
R : renal tubular acidosis
and a newer mnemonic RAGE:
R : renal tubular acidosis, respiratory acidosis
A : acetazolamide, ammonium chloride
G : GI (diarrhea, enteroenteric fistula, ureterosigmoidostomy)
E : endocrine (same as above endocrine list)
3. Increased anion gap acidosis
The older mnemonic is MUDPIES:
M : methanol
U : uremia
D : diabetes
P : paraldehyde
I : idiopathic (lactic acidosis)
E : ethylene glycol
S : salicylates
and a newer one called DULSI:
D : diabetic ketoacidosis
U : uremia
L : lactic acidosis
S : salicylate poisoning
I : intoxicants (methanol, ethanol, ethylene glycol)
MISCELLANEOUS
Clubbing (by Doog)
Some Say Marry Money, But My Brother Says Big Bras Matter More (what cranial
nerve is Motor, Sensory, or Both)
INNERVATION OF PENIS:
Parasympathetic puts it up; sympathetic spurts it out
"S2, 3, 4 keep the penis off the floor"
Innervation of the penis by branches of the pudental nerve, derived from spinal cord
levels S2-4
AORTIC BRANCHES:
ABC'S
Aortic arch gives off the Bracheiocephalic trunk, the left Common Carotid, and the
left Subclavian artery
NEUROANATOMY
For the function of the temporal lobes, think of a helmet which covers the side of the
head:
HELM:
H : hearing
E : emotion
L : learning
M : memory
Anatomy
Bones of the Wrist
Some Lovers Try Positions That They Cannot Handle
Slowly Lower Tilly's Pants To The Curly Hairs
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Brachial Plexus
Randy Travis Drinks Cold Beers Robert Taylor Drinks Cold Beer
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Branches of the Brachial Plexus (In order from most lateral to most medial)
My Aunt Raped My Uncle
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Cranial Nerves
Oh Oh Oh To Touch And Feel Virgin Girls Vaginas And Hymens
You have 1 nose. You have 2 eyes. (The first "O" is Olfactory, second "O" is Optic)
To remember what cranial nerve is Motor, Sensory, or Both use this ( In order from
CN I to CN XII):
Some Say Marry Money, But My Brother Says Big Bras Matter Most
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Extraocularmotor muscles
LR6 (SO4) LR6: Lateral rectus --> VI abductens
SO4: Superior Oblique --> IV Trochlear
All other extraocularmotor muscles are CN III
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BONES
Back Trouble?
This uses the name of a famous Flemish physician to list off the different factors
causing back troubles. It's pretty old, though, as knife and bullet wounds aren't
mentioned. :^)
O
V
E
S
A
L
I
U
S Osteomyelitis
Vertebral Fracture
Extraspinal Tumour
Spondylolisthesis
Ankylosing Spondylitis
Lumbar Disk Increase
Intraspinal Tumour
Unhappiness
Stress
Cranial Bones
Annoying, aren't they? The cranial bones are the PEST OF 6...
P
E
S
T
O
F
Parietal
Ethmoid
Sphenoid
Temporal
Occipital
Frontal
the six? the number of bones!
Try this one as well: Old People From Texas Eat Spiders.
Cranial Sutures
Sutures have CLASS...
C
L
A
S
S Coronal
Lambdoid
and
Squamous
Sagittal
Facial Bones
"Con Man Max and Pal Ziggy Lack Nasty Voices". Not the most intuitive acrostic in
the world, but it works...
Con
Man
Max
Pal
Ziggy
Lack
Nasty
Voices Conchae
Mandible
Maxilla
Palatine
Zygomatic
Lacrimal
Nasal
Vomer
Fractures
Star Wars fans (hi, Inderpal!) use "Go C3PO" to recall the seven types of bone
fractures...
G
O
C
C
C
P
O Greenstick
Open
Complete
Closed
Comminuted
Partial
Other
Orbital Bones
This one's a bit silly. It relies on the belief that a species called the FLEZMS are in
ORBITaround the earth.
F
L
E
Z
M
S Frontal
Lacrimal
Ethmoid
Zygomatic
Maxilla
Sphenoid
To Zanzibar By Motorcar
For the Cranial Nerves 1 through 12, in determining whether they are Sensory, Motor,
or Both (starting with Cranial Nerve 1)
Cranial bones:
Old Pygmies From Thailand Eat Skulls
Occipital
Parietal
Frontal
Temporal
Ethmoid
Sphenoid
Cranial sutures:
Learn Cranial Sutures
Lambdoid
Coronal
Sagittal
Branches of the External Carotid Artery in order starting with the first branch
(superior thyroid artery).
See plate 29 in Netter's Atlas of Human Anatomy.
Contributed by Calvin Lee, Surgical Resident, Case Western Reserve on 7/22/98. This
is a good "pimp" question/fact when you are in the OR assisting on a thyroid or a
carotid case. Know this one!
PHYSIOLOGY
Muscles
Horny Office Temps
Six factors triggering smooth muscle contraction are oxygen, temperature, ions,
hormones, stretch, and acid level (pH). The acronym is "SHIP TO" but the mnemonic
phrase is much better: Office Temp's Eye On Whore Stretching Ass. Notice ion is
encoded as eye on in this example.
Crossbridge Cycle
The most basic part of the functional muscle is the cross bridge site where muscular
contractions occur. The process of myosin heads attaching to actin, bending, then
releasing takes four steps: ready, coupling, bending, letting go. A different chemical
triggers each step thusly: hydrolysis makes Ready; Calcium ions cause the Coupling;
ADP bends the myosin head; ATP lets go. Sounds like a new dance to me.
BIOCHEMISTRY
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Urea Cycle
Ordinarily, Careless Crappers, Are Also Frivolous About Urination.
Ornithine, Carbamoyl, Citrulline, Aginosuccinate, Aspartate, Fumarate, Arginine,
Urea.