More than ten years ago, the faculty members of the Department of Pharmacology at the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine developed a review book of medical pharmacology in response to requests from our second year medical students who were preparing to sit for the Part I examination of the National Board of Medical Examiners. The students expressed a need for an organized approach to cope with the volume of basic science curricular material presented during the first two years. Therefore, our review book was not designed to provide a comprehensive text on pharmacology, but rather to provide the students with a significant core of information, as a refresher, after they had successfully completed a basic course in pharmacology. This book represents a major revision of our review of medical pharmacology. The book has been reorganized, updated and expanded to provide current information on major new drugs and information on older drug groups that typically are covered on licensure examinations. The book also has been expanded to include a large number of new questions for self-examination. The faculty have endeavored to retain a reasonably concise, relevant and readable review book that will provide the students with a thorough review of pharmacology. Students are advised to refer to comprehensive textbooks, as needed, to fill in any gaps in their knowledge which may be disclosed by the self-examinations.
