Released Items Explained
Every fall, the NBME ( National Board of Medical Examiners) releases 150 sample questions for candidates to see what USMLE Step 1 questions look like. They publish the items on CD-ROM; they also can be downloaded from the USMLE web site. It is important for you to review these items, as they are similar in both format and content to those on the real exam.
What the NBME doesn't provide are the explanations. That's where we offer you our USMLE preparation courses! We have written comprehensive explanations to all 150 items, including discussions of why the right answers are right and why all the distracters are wrong. Please note that the questions themselves are copyrighted by the NBME and can not be reproduced. If you don't already have the USMLE's CD-ROM, visit www.usmle.org.
Test Yourself!
Our Kaplan courses offers the most USMLE-style practice questions. The courses questions are in a vignette format and reflect the "higher order" style featured on the most recent exam administrations. Every question includes comprehensive explanations that include a detailed review of the correct answer and provide explanations for why each distracter is wrong. Preview FREE sample questions and explanations taken from our review programs for the USMLE Step 1.
Step 1 Sample Items
1. A 32-year-old construction worker arrives in the emergency department after an accident on the job. The tendon of the biceps brachii at the elbow has been severed by a laceration that extends 2 cm medially from the tendon. Which of the following structures is likely to have been injured by medial extension of the laceration?
| (A) | Brachial artery |
| (B) | Musculocutaneous nerve |
| (C) | Profunda brachii artery |
| (D) | Radial nerve |
| (E) | Ulnar nerve |
2. A 52-year-old man presents to his physician after a community health screening test reveals a fasting glucose of 170 mg/dL. Physical examination is remarkable for bronze skin pigmentation, hepatomegaly, splenomegaly, and limitation of motion in the second and third metacarpophalangeal joints of both hands. A liver biopsy obtained from the patient is shown above. The man has no known history of hemolytic anemia and takes daily multivitamins without minerals. Which of the following pigments is most likely present in the man's liver?
| (A) | Bilirubin |
| (B) | Carotene |
| (C) | Ferritin |
| (D) | Lipofuscin |
| (E) | Melanin |