Expected Reading

The only way to learn internal medicine is to read on a daily basis about your patients. In addition, reading prior to lectures and Saturday conferences will ensure that you will absorb more information.

1. You should read daily about the disease entities you encounter on the wards. The department of medicine has designated ‘Harrison’s Principles of Internal Medicine” as the textbook of choice. It is expected that you will read the relevant chapters prior to lectures and as they pertain to your patient. This textbook is available in the NYU library, on-line and in the NYU bookstore.  
2. It is expected that you will read information sent to you prior to lectures – in addition to the relevant chapters in Harrison’s, I will be sending review articles relevant to the topic.

Supplemental Reading

1. The libraries of the various institutions contain the medical journals listed below, all of which have excellent review articles that complement text-book chapters on various topics. The chief residents have a database of articles that we can print for you:    
   1. New England Journal of Medicine
   2. British Medical Journal
   3. Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA)
   4. The Lancet
   5. The Annals of Internal Medicine
2. Many students use programmed text-books to learn pattern recognition in ECG and CXR interpretation. I would recommend reviewing these texts several times throughout your 3rd and 4th year. There are many available ECG books (most students use Dubin). I recommend “Felson’s Principles of Chest Roentegraphy” for CXRs.
3. The on-line text “Up To Date” is available in many locations and in the NYU library. Some students and residents have their own accounts. It is a very good resource to read quickly about disease entities.
4. Finally, many students use review books (e.g. First Aid, Blue Prints, Pretest) for shelf exam review and for eventual board review. It is acceptable to use these books as a quick supplement to the expected reading described above. Your knowledge base will NOT be sufficient if you rely on these texts as primary sources of information.