Best Books for the Surgery Shelf
“The DeVirgilio” Book
Surgery: A Case Based Clinical Review by DeVirgilio
I have nothing but great things to say about this book. I wish the authors wrote the shelf review guides for other resources, but they’re surgeons and probably don’t remember much about general neurology.
What makes it a great review source, especially for surgery, is written in a very concise format but it is comprehensive enough that you walk away with understanding of the material. Emphasizes the take-home points (what will kill someone, why THIS is the test to diagnosis X) that show up frequently on exams. Includes questions which are difficult, but further emphasize the take-home points.
Each topic is short enough you can read one or two relatively quickly after a long day and you want to do something.
Pestana’s Surgery Notes
I read both Pestana’s and DeVirgilio, and preferred DeVirgilio for my learning style. But Pestana’s is a classic for a reason and works for a lot of people (I also thought he was pretty funny). It’s not a pocket reference, but small enough to carry around to pull out on downtime.
If short on time, running through Pestana’s questions in the book would reinforce the concepts. Also, if you receive Kaplan through your school, he also has lectures for Step 2 CK available through Kaplan as well which may be a good idea while driving/walk home.
Other Essential Resources
UWorld
Surgery + Medicine GI questions
One of the best things I did for the Surgery shelf was to run through Medicine GI questions as I did not have IM before Surgery. I have heard the surgery shelf described as the “management of surgical problems by general practitioners.” Knowing how to work up potential surgical problems is tremendous for surgery questions. Knowing the work up and management (even if the answer isn’t surgery!) for GI problems will serve you very well on the shelf. Just remember to come back to these questions when you’re studying for IM (and not remember the night before your IM shelf like I did).
Online Med Ed
In addition to DeVirgilio, OME reinforces a foundation for surgery. I found the videos on trauma management were particularly useful. Additionally, there are a lot of videos for subspecialties which are essential to watch right before rotating on these services. Peds surgery can sneak up on this shelf so I would also recommend these videos as well.
⇉ Other helpful resources
• Step 2 CK Study Guide
• Step 2 CS Study Guide
• Shelf Resources (by subject)
• Anki Settings Help for Shelf or Step Prep
• How to make Anki Cards Efficiently
• Biostatistics for Step 2
Step 2 Study Guide 