Physiology is a very comprehensive subject that requires dedication and hard work in order to grasp it. It’s been my main subject this year and it is probably one of the most important and overwhelming pre-clinical subjects. There are many textbooks available but which one to choose?
Here are a few of which I used and found well-constructed and easy to find the things that I was searching for
This is more for revision and to really get the basics in, because even though it’s a great book, it’s just not enough for a med student. So it’s great to get some basic understanding of the concepts and it gives you a great base to build on but you need to work with other more detailed textbooks such as the ones described below.
This is the one I studied most from; it’s got great graphs and I liked the way concepts were explained. It just suited me most. I got 3rd edition and you also get online access to the book and additional study materials on Inkling such as questions and videos which were also very helpful to me when I was studying for the final.
I used Guyton mostly for cardiovascular physiology and ECG because no other book that I used covered it in such detail, so if you’re having trouble with understanding concepts such as ECG, preload, afterload, etc. I suggest you go over it in Guyton. Other topics that are also covered very well are long-term blood pressure regulation and kidneys, so again if you’re having trouble understanding that maybe try to go over it here.
This is the one I used least of all, but still found it useful for some topics.
This was my holy grail for revising for the final exam. It’s a collection of MCQ’s with answers and the best part is that not only do you have the correct answers given, there’s also an explanation for why that is the correct answer and some additional information on the topic so it’s really great for revising. I’ve used it a lot throughout the year and would recommend it to anyone who wants quality revisions and knowledge.
I know there are quite a few books here listed, but what I have to emphasize is that I used Boron (because I liked it most) for 90% of my studies and just checked out some topics in other books (well except for the Guyton review but this is different). If you’re about to tackle physiology, then I strongly suggest checking those books out and then decide for ONE which you will use for the majority of the time, and then use others if you feel the need to. Otherwise, you’ll just end up looking for information all over the place and confused.
You can find the best resources for other subjects here.