Opacity of lens will occur
Symptoms include painless decreased visual acuity, decreased night vision, glare,
and sometimes double vision
Physical examination can reveal a decreased or absent red reflex
Treatment is surgical removal of the cataract
Once again, the folks who write the Internal Medicine licensing exams don’t expect you to
have the depth of knowledge regarding the plethora of eye diagnoses that an ophthalmologist
possesses. However, topics such as the ones mentioned in the pearls above should assist
you with the General Internal Medicine section of the med school clerkship shelf, ACP in-
training and ABIM board exams.
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General Internal Medicine Pearls: Vaccinations
By: Dr. Sunir Kumar
While most of the ABIM Examination topics fall neatly into organ system categories, not all of them fit into this schematic. These include: primary care screening guidelines, substance
abuse, vaccinations, etc. Here at Knowmedge, we’ve incorporated this important group of
subject areas into General Internal Medicine, similar to the American College of Physicians’
Internal Medicine In-Training Exam Blueprint. Earlier this week, we reviewed the 5 key eye
diseases seen on the ABIM board and NBME shelf exams. Today we explore the high-yield topic of vaccinations.
A comprehensive adult immunization schedule, by Vaccine and Age Group, can be found on
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website (unlike other preventive health measures, vaccination guidelines are not released by the USPSTF). Fortunately, you don’t need to memorize the entire CDC chart. Instead, for the ACP Internal Medicine in-training
exam, ABIM boards and NBME shelf exam, focus on these 7 vaccinations.
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1. Tetanus, diphtheria, pertussis (Tdap)
Administer Tdap to all adults who have not previously received Tdap or whose
vaccination status is unknown.
Boost with Td every 10 yrs.
