Cardiology

Heart failure split by ejection fraction: HFrEF (systolic, EF ≤40%) versus HFpEF (diastolic, EF ≥50%) — their distinct patients, exam signs (S3 vs S4), workup, and why only HFrEF has the mortality-reducing "four pillars" of GDMT (with SGLT2 inhibitors now benefiting both).

A board-focused walkthrough of acute coronary syndromes from plaque rupture to reperfusion, contrasting STEMI, NSTEMI, and unstable angina with the classic vignettes, ECG localization, next-best-step decisions, and the post-MI complication timeline. Emphasizes the high-yield twists boards test — RV infarct preload dependence, no lytics in NSTE-ACS, STEMI-equivalents (posterior MI, Sgarbossa-positive LBBB), and which therapies actually reduce mortality.

A Step 2 CK high-yield lesson on stable angina/chronic coronary disease covering supply–demand pathophysiology, the typical-angina criteria and pretest probability, the stress-testing decision tree, a chest-pain differential table (stable/unstable angina, NSTEMI, STEMI, vasospastic), and the split between symptom-relief and event-reducing therapy (COURAGE/ISCHEMIA and CABG survival indications).

A board-focused tour of the five tested valvular lesions — aortic stenosis/regurgitation, mitral stenosis/regurgitation, and mitral valve prolapse — linking each murmur and buzzword to its pathophysiology, echo findings, and next-best-step intervention. Includes maneuver tables, the acute-regurgitation surgical emergencies, and the crucial acute-vs-chronic AR distinction.

A board-focused walkthrough of bradyarrhythmias and heart block — from conduction anatomy and nodal-vs-infranodal localization through the ECG hallmarks of each AV block, classic vignettes (complete heart block, Lyme carditis), and the ACLS-to-pacemaker management pathway. Built around STEP 2 CK next-best-step decisions.

A board-focused walkthrough of tachyarrhythmias organized by the exam's own logic — narrow vs wide, regular vs irregular, stability first — covering SVT, atrial fibrillation/flutter, and VT with classic vignette buzzwords, ECG findings, and next-best-step management.

A board-focused walkthrough of the three cardiomyopathies—dilated, hypertrophic, and restrictive—linking pathophysiology to the classic vignette buzzwords, ECG/echo findings, and next-best-step decisions. Includes HCM murmur maneuvers, the cardiac-amyloid voltage–mass clue, and the restrictive-vs-constrictive discriminator.

A boards-focused walkthrough of the pericardial disease spectrum — acute pericarditis, effusion, tamponade, and constriction — emphasizing classic vignette buzzwords, ECG/echo findings, and next-best-step decisions. Includes three high-yield vignettes and a side-by-side comparison table.