medtapp

Up until this morning, if you were looking for a question bank application for the first part of the medical boards, you’d get McGraw-Hill’s First Aid Q&A for the USMLE Step 1, developed by Modality Inc. Based on the 2009 edition of the book of the same title (one in a series of popular First Aid review books for the USMLE), this app was launched on August 20, 2009 at the price of $44.99.

Today, you have another choice–Lange Q&A: USMLE Step 1, also developed by Modality. This is based on the 2008 edition of the print version. Modality is surely living up to its slogan of providing a “medical school in your pocket.” This app is currently offered at a discounted (25% off) price of $33.99. After October 31, it goes up to $44.99. Not surprisingly, the First Q&A app mentioned earlier can also be purchased for $33.99 until the end of the month.

I guess the question now is–which one should you get? The developer mentions that both apps offer the following features:

•Detailed explanations for right and wrong answers
•Time keeping to let you track the average amount of time you are spending on each question.
•Quiz and assessment tools that allow you to track progress and success
•Question browser mode for unscored review of any and all content sections
•Reference mode provides correct answers immediately for quick review
•Detailed statistics organized by category to highlight stronger and weaker areas
•Ability to bookmark and save difficult questions for future study, or shuffle questions within sections or across all sections

They differ in the following:

Number of questions and answers–First Aid’s 986 vs. Lange’s 1200
Source–First Aid Q&A for the USMLE Step 1, 2nd edition (January 2009) vs. Lange Q&A USMLE Step 1, 6th edition (March 2008)
Topic Areas–First Aid goes by subject and system (Behavioral Science, Biochemistry, Embryology, Microbiology, Immunology, Pathology, Pharmacology, Cardiovascular System, Endocrine System, Gastrointestinal System, Hematology-Oncology, Musculoskeletal System & Connective Tissue, Neurology, Psychiatry, Renal System, Reproductive System, and Respiratory System), while Lange goes by subject (Anatomy, Physiology, Biochemistry, Microbiology, Pathology, Pharmacology, and Behavioral Sciences)

A word of advice: a list of the features may not be sufficient to decide which one to buy. Some people may base their decision on the source itself (Amazon reviewers favor First Aid Q&A over Lange Q&A), while others will wait until some reviews for the apps turn up online. Medtapp will try to review these apps in full as soon as we get a copy. If anyone of you has used either app, please do not to hesitate to post in the comments or to email us at medtapp @ gmail . com.

Links:

Modality’s website
First Aid Q&A for the USMLE Step 1 on the App Store
Lange Q&A: USMLE Step 1 on the App Store