(Part 2) Best medical reference books according to redditors
We found 97 Reddit comments discussing the best medical reference books. We ranked the 62 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the products ranked 21-40. You can also go back to the previous section.
Paralysis and the Politics of Polio
Poliomyelitis, or polio, is a contagious disease caused by a virus that may attack nerve cells of the brain and spinal cord.
Fever, headache, sore throat, vomiting are some of the milder symptoms, and some victims develop neurological complications and paralysis of one or more limbs or respiratory muscles. In severe cases it can be fatal, due to respiratory paralysis.
Some people mistakenly believe that polio usually leads to paralysis, but this isn't the case.
95% of people exposed to the natural polio virus don't exhibit any symptoms, even under epidemic conditions, according to the Physicians' Desk Reference 2001 and Natural History of Infectious Disease by Sir Frank Macfarlane Burnet and David O. White.
The Wikipedia article on polio initially cites the figure as 90%, but elsewhere on the page the “asymptomatic” outcome of poliovirus infection is listed as 90%-95%. According to the source used for these statistics, “Up to 95% of all polio infections are inapparent or asymptomatic.”
About 5% of infected people will experience mild symptoms such as a sore throat, stiff neck, headache, and fever—often diagnosed as a cold or flu. Muscular paralysis affects approximately one out of every 1,000 people who contract polio.
>This has lead some scientific researchers to conclude that the small percentage of people who do develop paralytic polio may be anatomically susceptible to the disease. The vast remainder of the population may be naturally immune to the polio virus. [Moskowitz, R. “Immunizations: the other side.” Mothering (Spring 1984):36]
Usually there is a full recovery from paralytic polio—it rarely is permanent. Only a small percentage of cases will experience residual paralysis.
There are many serious questions about what factors contribute to increasing an individual's susceptibility to serious adverse reactions to the polio virus.
Several studies have demonstrated that injections, either for vaccines or antibiotics, increase susceptibility to polio. It's been known since the early 1900s that paralytic poliomyelitis can start at the site of an injection.
>When diphtheria and pertussis vaccines were introduced in the 1940s, cases of paralytic poliomyelitis skyrocketed. This was documented in Lancet and other medical journals.
McCloskey, BP. “The relation of prophylactic inoculations to the onset of poliomyelitis.” Lancet (April 18, 1950):659-63
Geffen, DH “The incidence of paralysis occurring in London children within four weeks after immunization.” Med Officer 1950;83:137-40
Martin, JK. “Local paralysis in children after injections.” Arch Dis Child 1950;25:1-14
>In 1949, the Medical Research Council in Great Britain set up a committee to investigate the matter and ultimately concluded that individuals are at increased risk of paralysis for 30 days following injections; injections alter the distribution of paralysis; and it did not matter whether the injections were subcutaneous or intramuscular.
In 1992, a study was published in the Journal of Infectious Diseases that again confirmed these results after documenting an outbreak of polio in Oman that was linked to the DTP (diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis) shot. They concluded that “injections are an important cause of provocative poliomyelitis.”
>In 1995, the New England Journal of Medicine published a study showing that children who received a single injection within one month after receiving a polio vaccine were 8 times more likely to contract polio than children who received no injections.
>The risk jumped 27-fold when children received up to nine injections...and with ten or more injections, the likelihood of developing polio was 182 times greater than expected.
>Why injections increase the risk of polio is unclear. Nevertheless, these studies and others indicate that “injections must be avoided in countries with endemic poliomyelitis.” Health authorities believe that all “unnecessary” injections should be avoided as well.
A poor diet has been shown to raise one's susceptibility to polio.
>In 1948, during the height of the polio epidemics, Dr. Benjamin Sandler, a nutritional expert at the Oteen Veterans' Hospital, documented a link between polio and an excessive use of sugars and starches.
>He compiled records showing that countries with the highest per capita consumption of sugar, such as the United States, Britain, Australia, Canada, and Sweden (with over 100 pounds per person per year) had the greatest incidence of polio. In contrast, polio was practically unheard of in China (with its sugar use of only 3 pounds per person per year).
Sandler claimed that sugars and starches lower blood sugar levels which leads to hypoglycemia.
>Such food dehydrate the cells and leech calcium from the body. A serious calcium deficiency precedes polio. Researchers have always known that polio strikes with its greatest intensity during the hot summer months.
>Dr. Sandler observed that children consume greater amounts of ice cream, soft drinks, and artificially sweetened products in hot weather. In 1949, before the polio season began, he warned the residents of North Carolina, through the newspapers and radio, to decrease their consumption of these products.
>That summer, North Carolinians reduced their intake of sugar by 90%; polio decreased by the same amount! The North Carolina State Health Department reported 2,498 cases of polio in 1948 and 229 cases in 1949. [Data taken from North Carolina State Health Department figures]
>One manufacturer shipped one million less gallons of ice cream during the first week alone following the publication of Dr. Sandler's anti-polio diet. Soft drink sales were down as well.
>But powerful Rockefeller Milk Trust, which sold frozen products to North Carolinians, combined forces with soft drink business leaders and convinced the public that Sandler's findings were a myth and the polio figures a fluke. By the summer of 1950 sales were back to previous levels and polio cases returned to “normal.” [McBean, E., Allen, H.]
As can be seen by this graph of United States polio rates, polio epidemics became a serious problem in the late 1940s and early 1950s, although it never quite reached the levels of 1916 (when the epicenter of the epidemic was mere miles from a Rockefeller research lab that was experimenting with an extremely virulent strain of the polio virus).
By the early 1950s, Jonas Salk began experimenting with a possible polio vaccine.
>In 1952, Salk combined three types of polio virus grown in cultures made from monkey kidneys. Using formaldehyde, he was able to “kill” or inactivate the viral matter so that it would trigger an antibody response without causing the disease.
In 1955, the first polio immunization campaign was launched in the United States. Almost immediately, it became clear that something was very wrong with the vaccine. In the end, 70,000 school children became seriously ill from Salk's vaccine—the infamous “Cutter Incident.”
>The mistake resulted in the production of 120,000 doses of polio vaccine that contained live polio virus. Of the children who received the vaccine, 40,000 developed abortive poliomyelitis. The Cutter incident was one of the worst pharmaceutical disasters in U.S. history.
The renowned surgeon Alton Ochsner even gave the vaccine to two of his grandchildren...one died and the other was paralyzed. “Apparently, Salk's killed-virus vaccine was not completely inactivated.”
Lucky for you, the medical industry is also a fan of cheat sheets and makes one themselves.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/156363838X
This one seems to be popular. It's been the "bible" in every place I've worked over the past 30 years. A new edition is published every year.
http://www.amazon.com/Nursing2014-Drug-Handbook-Nursing/dp/1451186355
How to Roll a Joint: step by step: Volume 1
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/154043138X/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_XNjjDb281TAGJ
you're not wrong in your analysis. if you want to treat yourself, learn this book. its what pharmacists use. https://www.amazon.com/Handbook-Nonprescription-Drugs-Interactive-Self-Care/dp/1582122652. If you think its expensive, ask yourself what an unnecessary doctors office trip costs.
Handbook of Non-Prescription Drugs isn't exactly "pocket", but it has everything you're asking for.
Let me start by saying -- I went on an entirely selfish vacation earlier this year. I would say anyone can have multiple types of dream vacations, right? Since I already took one of them, this is another dream for me.
The vacation would be a medical service trip to Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic. While my CNA certification would not be valid there, I could still take blood pressure, and help the docs and nurses with administrative tasks. I also speak Spanish, so I think my skills would be very well used there. Trips like this help us learn things that can help us in serving our own community. The group going on this trip is also active in providing free medical and dental services in our community, and they always say that doing these sorts of trips helps them to think outside of the box to find new ways to serve, new ways to address issues, and new ways to relate to people. It also helps bond the team together, and this helps communication and also results in better service to the community.
I believe our accommodations will be with local families, which is also really exciting. First of all, have you ever had Dominican food? Secondly, I know from some of my Dominican friends that this can mean all night spent up talking, even dancing, especially on welcome night.
I would take A med bag, fully stocked to include all sorts of medical supplies, and most specifically relevant, a medical spanish reference because you never know what medical term, disease or part of the anatomy you'll encounter that you may not have had opportunity to learn before.
The team is already assembled, but I wish I could take my husband. He also speaks Spanish, (actually, he's a native speaker) and I feel like this would be a good opportunity for him to understand things I am passionate about.
Thanks for the fun contest! I needed this today as that trip is definitely on my mind. I know I cannot go, but just thinking of it led me to email the program coordinator to see how I can help from here.
My undergrad was pretty solid, 1/2 of it at community college, and the rest at a local state uni. I got into vet school 1 semester away from getting my bachelor's degree (biology major). Most of my grades were A/B with like 2 C's in there. My GRE score was low-average when looking at typical vet student application stats. But being a registered tech with a fair amount of general practice experience along with a few internships and courses in dentistry, ophthalmology, emergency med and exotics helped round things out. I was not immediately offered a spot but was called off the waiting list in March.
The big things are experience and good enough grades to prove that once you're in school, you will be able to "hack it." The myth of C=DVM is just that. Vet schools nowadays have more stringent academic probation guidelines, so you can only afford to get a few C's during each semester. I think currently if you hit 2.0 or below you go on academic warning at my school. And we've lost an average of 2 students a semester so far because of poor performance.
Many schools these days are looking for more lab and research experience. If you have any of this with post-grad work, that will help you out. Also variety of experience is good. Don't forget about large animals; farm/production animal type experience is more and more rare and could help you stand out.
The [AAVMC(]http://www.aavmc.org/) site is helpful to look at, and there is an annual publication VMSARwhich lists the incoming class statistics for the previous year, so you can see what kind of students the schools have been accepting.
There is a good pre-vet forum on the Student Doctor Network that is pretty active.
Good luck!
Your being a CNA will give you a bit of a boost during early clinicals, but that goes away quickly. Start reading up on pharmacology, medical terminology, and documentation now.
http://www.amazon.com/Mosbys-Surefire-Documentation-Nurses-Document/dp/0323034349
http://www.amazon.com/Charting-Made-Incredibly-Easy-Series%C2%AE/dp/1605471968
Rockwood and Green's is the bible IMHO. My first job was in ortho trauma and I slept with these volumes while I was rotating with the practice while still in school.
Wheeless is also a great website but sometimes info is incomplete
Physical Exam is another great resource. Really helped with those shoulder exam techniques, which always confused me for some reason
I read this book during my gap year:
http://www.amazon.com/The-Country-Doctor-Revisited-Twenty-First/dp/1606350617
It's wonderful, it has short stories written by physicians that are very well done, as well as a few poems and short essays. The focus is on rural medicine and the difficulties that these physicians go through. They see some pretty unreal shit, and a lot of stuff that made me quite angry, sad, etc. It's a very good book, I highly recommend it.
Yoink.
I got it for free at my local library (but then spilled juice all over it and now I need to buy a new one. Oops.). It's a pretty quick read and is just meant to get your mind going in the right direction. Don't get too caught up in every single question it offers to you.
I graduated with a 2.95 GPA. However, I received many A's and a few B's the last two years of my undergrad. My GPA was low because the first two years of my undergrad I was undeclared and pretty much had no direction or desire to do school. I am attending a 1 year biomedical program that I have already been accepted into at a major Philadelphia medical school, and after that I will be applying to medical school. I have also completed an extensive 9 month internship in molecular research where I worked on Aptamers, and I also volunteer regularly. I will be taking the MCAT this fall.
In addition, take EVERYTHING you read on Student Doctor network with a grain of salt. Several of my friends received 25 - 27 on their MCAT with a 3.5 GPA and were accepted into multiple DO schools. Another friend of mine had a great GPA (3.95) and 32 MCAT and was offered a 100K dollar scholarship to a great MD school in Maryland.
A great book to read is "How to Get Into Medical School by Someone Who Has Actually Done It" by Daniel Mijares. He points out that many students who get into medical school have to re-apply.
http://www.amazon.com/Into-Medical-School-Someone-Actually/dp/1430326808/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1312554379&sr=8-1
This book is a must. University libraries with a Psych department will keep it on reserve. I did an AMA sometime back so search for that and feel free to PM me questions. I advise incoming students every year.
Also, if you have an advisor in the Psychology department talk to them as well. The whole process can be daunting and they can give you a good insiders perspective.
edit:
Behavioral posted the same book. I wasn't paying attention. It is an essential.
I will give you a task. If you read this extremely detailed explanation for how the human brain works and you still have questions about your topic, I will be glad to field them.
I think you don't know enough about neurobiology. It isn't a simple topic, but literature is available to give you a masterful understanding.
I've taken graduate courses in animal behavior and animal neurophysiology. I've also read and attempted to commit to memory all of Citow. If you don't make the same effort, then you are abusing a pulpit.
Snapshots:
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Overall, you're off to a good start! If you're feeling lost, I recommend this book for personal statement help, it really helped me to organize my thoughts: https://www.amazon.com/Write-Physician-Assistant-Personal-Statement/dp/1517303753/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1517512652&sr=8-1&keywords=pa+personal+statement
The story about your father is very compelling, and your care and concern for him is clear in your writing. However, I would try to consolidate the first two paragraphs of your paper (probably to about half the size they currently are) so that you'll have room later in your essay to discuss more about your background and experiences.
You mentioned you were in microbiology when your father had his accident, so were you already interested in medicine at that point? I'd like to hear a little more about your background prior to your father's accident.
You talked about how your father's medical team made you interested in team-based medicine, but what specifically drew you to PA? Was there a PA in particular that inspired you to pursue the profession?
Your passion for the underserved and non-English speaking population is awesome. I'd love to see some more details about why being a bilingual psychometrist cemented your desire to become a PA specifically. Did you work with PAs there? Was there one patient that really touched your heart that made you more determined to become a PA? You talk about how hearing how grateful they were made you want to pursue your graduate studies, but sometimes telling a brief anecdote about a specific time this occurred can create more of an emotional connection for the reader.
Finally, with the extra space you've hopefully gained by consolidating the first two paragraphs, what other things do you want the admissions committee to know about you? Do you have any other patient care, healthcare experience, or volunteer experience that you feel will make you a great PA in the future?
Hope this helps and good luck!
I've got this one and like it. https://www.amazon.com/dp/1496384075/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_lgCZCbBMRM7VP
I need this book for a class this semester. It is on my $20+ WL, and used is perfectly fine.
I am going to school for my Bachelors's of Science in Nursing. My mom always told me I would be a nurse, but I never believed her. I'm so excited, but when we received our book list, I wanted to cry. One of the classes has FOUR required books (and I'm taking four classes)! Anyhow, thanks so much for this contest. You are amazing! I saw that you are studying physics- wow! I took a intro to physics class just to see if it was something I was interested in- nope, not for me! lol. Good luck in school though, and thanks again for the contest!
Some things can be "diagnosed" without tests or touching. Ever read this book: Handbook of Nonprescription Drugs
http://www.amazon.com/Handbook-Nonprescription-Drugs-Interactive-Self-Care/dp/1582121605
Great book.