FRCS Experience:

Everyone works differently but this was my take on the exam.

Did the UKITE in December didnt excel myself but this was perfect to get myself
into gear to start proper revision for the MCQs in June.

MCQs
I thought they were fairly random. I think its just a case of bookwork, some
people go on the Miller revision course (I was warned off it...too costly for what
you got). 5% of the whole exam is reviewing a paper.

My tactic was to buy every book. I used the following:

Post Graduate Orthopaedics MCQs and EMQs for the FRCS (Orth). Sri Ram
Excellent.

Orthopaedic Surgery review, questions and answers. Sokolowski

Not many people get this book but I think I used it more than any other. Good
points for the MCQs and picks out the essential bits.

Miller. Used it a bit

Current Orthopaedic practice: a concise guide for postgraduate exams Agarwal

This is much easier to read than Miller, doesnt go into as much detail.

Orthopaedic Basic Science for the postgraduate examination. Dawson-Bowling

Worth doing but very difficult.

Apley. Never opened it

First Aid for the Orthopaedic boards. Malinzak.

Concise, certainly not essential to get.

The Black Book.

Quite old now but still worth doing.

Basic Orthopaedic Science. The Stanmore Guide. Ramachandran

Very good, especially for the vivas.

Anatomy: Hoppenfeld and Netters. Netters is shorter and has all the
information in it.

Orthobullets MCQs: Fine, but not that similar to the exam

Orthobullets webinars: Excellent

Vivas and clinicals.

Had MCQs in June took one month off. Then started for the orals in November.
Everyone says get a study group. I found this logistically quite difficult, but if you
can I would do it.
I met up with someone from NW Thames about 10 times and we just went
through examinations, which was helpful.
Did a couple of sessions with bosses at RLH, these were very helpful. And a few
sessions at Stanmore seeing patients.

I also did quite a lot of courses. This was my take on them:

ORUK Basic Science course in London. Lectures in the morning vivas pm, two
day course. Did it a year before the exam to scare myself. Good course.

RCS anatomy course for FRCS Orth. Good course (although I thought the Wessex
anatomy day was a lot better).

Cardiff Spinal FRCS Course. If you havent done a great deal of spines this is
excellent. Vivas and clinicals.

Chertsey FRCS course. 2 day course, only 100. Only about 8 people on the
course, covered a lot of basic sciences and lots of vivaing, 2 long days.

BOFAS foot and ankle course. This a free 2 day course, they keep saying its not
targeted towards the exam (it is!) and people of different levels on the course.
But they get in a lot of patients. I would highly recommend it.

Bristol Paeds FRCS Course. 2 day course lectures, vivas, clinicals. Excellent, all 3
questions I had in my paeds viva I had been asked on the course.

Imperial FRCS course. This is a 4 day course (expensive), vivas and clinicals. By
the 4th afternoon people are losing interest, I felt it ran on reputation, was
slightly disorganized. (Thats purely my view). Other people speak highly of it.

Wessex Clinical and anatomy course. This was a new course. Did it 2 weeks
before the exam. V reasonably priced only 12 people on it. Was excellent. Groups
of 3, 12 stations and each person got a long case at each station. V realistic. Then
on the 3rd day anatomy, 6 viva stations covering every area and approach.

The exam:
Its stressful.

I also bought: FRCS trauma and Orthopaedics viva: Davies. Worth getting and
similar to the style of questions being asked.

Post graduate Orthopaedics: viva guide for the FRCS (Tr & Orth) Examination.
Banaszkiewiccz. Very good
I didnt get round to doing it but on www.orthnorth.org the people in the
Northern Deanery have put on the website the questions they were asked. A lot
of people say this was very useful.

Clinicals:
Upper Limb short:
FPL rupture, Mannerfelt syndrome
SNAC wrist
Massive supraspinatus tear, biceps rupture

Lower limb short:

Scoliosis
Mortons neuroma!
Girdlestones procedure

Upper limb long:

SLAC wrist...talked all about PRC and 4 corner fusion, differences etc

Lower limb long:

V mild hip OA in someone who wasnt really in any pain, with proximal femur
racture when they were younger

Vivas

Adult path:
Cauda equina
Necrotising Fascitiis, how do all the organisms work etc (!!)
Shoulder dislocation
Osteosarcoma
Metal on metal resurfacing
Valgus knee in a young man

Trauma:
Old achilles tendon rupture management, how to do the operation for this
Hip fracture (this was tricky examiner wanted evidence why we use a cemented
polished taper rather than a Thompsons....couldnt give him the evidence, just
said follow guidelines)
SH 2 distal tibia (these 3 cases were tricky)
LisFranc/ foot compartment syndrome
Supracondylar
Periprosthetic distsal femoral fracture management (had done exactly the same
case in a viva session with PB)

Hands and paeds:

Flexor tendon rupture
Volar plate injury
SNAC
Calcaneonavicular coalition
DDH in an older patient
Proximal femoral fracture in a simple bone cyst

Basic science:
Bone and how do osteocytes work
Nerves of foot and all the incisions you make for different cases and what nerves
are at risk
Prosthetics and how they work (the week before the exam I read through the
whole of the Ramachandran BS book but left out the chapter on prosthetics as I
thought it would never be asked!)
Fracture healing (in quite a lot of detail)
Infections in theatre, laminar flow
Metalossis (the science behind it)

Good luck. You need a very supportive family before embarking on the journey!