Case Files Obstetrics and Gynecology, Fifth Edition

This book would be fantastic, except for the fact that it constantly contradicts itself. Critical errors are extremely common in this book and other case files books I have studied. These books seem to have forgone proofreading and editing all together.

Update: Having finished reading this book I can confidently recommend that you do not buy it. Please don't read it. There are countless serious errata and contradictions thoughout the entire book. This author clearly did not do his homework when he wrote this book, and it is very obvious. Much of the really important medical information flat out incorrect.

Here are some examples:
1) The pathophysiology of Sheehan syndrome (it's caused by post-partum hypotension leading to infarction then necrosis of the anterior pituitary gland, not by a hemorrhagic stroke in the anterior pituitary like he states)
2) On page 475, his first clinical pearl states that all breast masses must be biopsied regardless of what the imaging studies show. Later on this same page, he states that some masses can simply be observed without biopsying them.
3) Indications for BCRA 1/2 testing: contradicts himself on pages 454 & 448
4) Pg. 416: He states that laparoscopy is always required to treat ectopic pregnancies, and that methotrexate should not be used. He then states on pg. 419 that methotrexate is the standard treatment for ectopic pregnancies.
5) Pg. 23 table 1-1 states different information for the normal labor parameters than is stated on page 60. Turns out, page 23 is incorrect

Overall impression:
This book is amazing. Dr Toy at UT HOUSTON has continued this great line of case Files in OB GYN. Looking through the contributors (pictures) it is obvious that, although this text is a great resource, it is clearly apparent that this is an "in-house" production coming from the great program at University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston and McGovern Medical School. This program is extensive and covers Memorial Hermann Hospital in the Texas Medical Center, St. Josephs hospital, and LBJ Hospital (Harris County Hospital serving undeserved population). That being said, although the contributors have a huge pool of experience, and references are present, the more gray areas of preferred pattern of practice may be biased towards the practice guidelines at UTH and may not apply to other programs or medical schools. That being said, thus book is an essential resource for the OBGYN MEDICAL SCHOOL ROTATION!
Stars: 5/5

BEST USE:
Used during OBGYN rotation as main source of material to study. This is comprehensive approach to what is needed in a case based format. Excellent for use for preparing for OBGYN shelf (only resource used, in addition to broencephalon's Anki step 2 deck). Scored very high on shelf.

CONTENT:
Organized with introduction to obgyn with essential information. Then, organized by cases in order of how the student should be reading for this rotation. Front index lists case by order they appear in the book and additionally in alphabetical order to find applicable cases easily.

Questions and answers are concise, easy to read, and comprehensive.

HIGH YIELD:
Covers all high yield topics in addition to lower yield topics.

QUALITY:
Bought new. Excellent quality. Spine and glue well made without any obvious defects

PRINTING AND IMAGING:
Text quality is high quality.
Images and tables are in greyscale and/or colored with blue ink. Ultrasound, CT, and other radiographic images are greyscale but high quality and easy to read. Anatomical, histological, and clinical images are greyscale and may be difficult to analyze without prior clinical experience of female anatomy to differentiate normal vs pathological findings.

BOOK SIZE:
Fits in larger what coat pockets. ~ 1 inch thick.

TEXT SIZE:
~size 10-12 font. Easy to read while standing or sitting at arms length distance.

CUSTOMER SERVICE: I did not need to contact costumer service at all for this product

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- D

MS3 here.
Recommend this book. There are some pretty drastic changes from the prior edition. For instance, active phase of labor is now considered 6 cm and up, not 4 cm. When evaluating for ectopic pregnancy, B-hcg is expected to increase by >50% within 48h (previously was more strict cut-off at 66%).

Don't be a dum-dum like me and walk around wards blissfully spewing out outdated facts. Cry cry :(

If you are using this as a study guide for exams like the NBME shelf, it's fine as a supplemental resource that covers a broad range of topics for the the exam. However, as other reviews have pointed out, this book is rife with errors.

Most of the errors are simple typographical errors (lack of spaces, words left out, typos, etc.) which is embarrassing but largely do not interfere with comprehension. But be warned, on average there are probably 1 such error every 1-2 pages which is a lot. Frankly, whoever the editor is should be embarrassed for putting out such a poor quality book.

However, typos aren't the biggest problem. The book is a series of cases likely written by different authors each with their own style, sources, and experiences. I don't know where the editors were but they clearly failed to do their job in terms of maintaining consistency of guidelines and facts between different authors as there are many contradictions from case to case (eg, Case 46 states it is common to excise all dominant breast masses in women aged 35 and above. Case 47 then says to core need biopsy a 50y/o w/ a likely benign fibroadenoma). Neither of the cases present an actual objective clinical guideline for what to do.

Other equally glaring contradictions abound (Case 47: patient less than age 50 with breast cancer w/ close relative diagnosed with breast cancer has a higher risk for BRCA than an identical patient age less than 50 with breast cancer w/ a close relative diagnosed with breast cancer at age less than 50? Is this book seriously telling me that all things being equal, having a close relative diagnosed with breast cancer at a younger age is less of a risk factor for BRCA mutation than having a close relative diagnosed with breast cancer of any age? Unlikely).

And the above example should illustrate another problem with the book - confusing writing style. Authors often jump back and forth from topic to topic within the same paragraph. Similar concepts that should take advantage of parallel stylistic writing instead are presented in vastly different ways. Ordering of concepts is a mess. Tables with confusing phrasing and ordering, sometimes with items that fit in multiple categories. I'm not a grammar guru but I can confidently say this book is not winning any plaudits from any English teachers any time soon.

Finally, every so often you come across an error so egregious that it's unforgivable. Case in point, Table 3-1. The different aspects of active vs physiologic management of the 3rd stage of labor is correct, but literally the headings "active" and "physiologic" are switched between the columns. Active management is not when you wait until placenta has been delivered to give uterotonic agents and physiologic management is not when you start uterotonic agents when the anterior shoulder is out. It's the other way around (as detailed in the text). That is flat out WRONG information. I can forgive typos. I can forgive contradictory information that's subjective to author experiences. I can forgive poor stylistic choices. But wrong information? That's unacceptable.

In summary, read this book for a review of topics. Don't use for content.

At my school, OB/GYN is 5 weeks with the shelf at the end. I bought the Case Files books on the recommendation of a classmate who found them very helpful. I did benefit from skimming about half the book as a decent primer for the OB floors. Not sure that benefit was worth the price tag. For shelf studying, I did not return to this book; rather, I did most of the APGO questions and all of the relevant UWorld questions, with excellent results.

Excellent resource. Forget any medical textbook or module assigned during your rotations. This book is concise, easy to read, and an excellent resource. Combine careful reading of this book with a question bank, and you'll have the ability to score above average on your shelf/comat exam

Great product.

This is a great book, and in my opinion, is the best book out there for the OB/Gyn Shelf/NBME. The book is organized into 2 halves- OB and Gyn- and there are practice questions after each vignette, and comprehensive questions at the back of the book. This also has information to help you succeed on the L&D service. I compared it to my classmates with the 4th edition, and I must say that the 5th edition has more practice questions and more up to date information on preeclampsia and other disorders. If you read this whole book, you will ace the shelf.

Great book. I’m using it for my OBGYN rotation in medical school. I love the explanations and different scenarios.

I like that this book makes you guess what the diagnosis is and what the differential diagnosis could be. The couple questions at the end of the case really solidify the the information. I'm studying to be a CPM and recommend this book for students entering the end of their apprenticeship.