Mnemonics are often used to help remember complex groups of individual items related to a common theme. Studies have shown that college students studying with mnemonics outperform students using rote learning, suggesting that mnemonics are useful in retention of facts. 1
In 1 study, researchers compared memory athletes and control subjects before and after mnemonic training. 2 Findings showed that mnemonics created connectivity changes in the control group similar to memory athletes at baseline. These changes persisted for as long as 4 months after training, demonstrating that mnemonics have long-lasting effects on memory capacity. 2
The most frequently used forms of medical mnemonics are acronyms or acrostics. Acronyms are words in which each letter in the word corresponds to a series of words to be remembered. 3 A familiar example of a medical acronym is “SLUDGE,” which represents the symptoms for cholinergic toxicity (salivation, lacrimation, urination, defecation, gastrointestinal upset, emesis). An acrostic involves a phrase in which the first letter of each word corresponds to the first letter of a word to be remembered. 3 A commonly used acrostic phrase for the memorization of the 12 cranial nerves is “On Old Olympus’ Towering Tops A Finn And German Viewed Some Hops”: olfactory, optic, oculomotor, trochlear, trigeminal, abducens, facial, auditory (vestibulocochlear), glossopharyngeal, vagus, spinal accessory, hypoglossal.
Mnemonics are an effective way for medical students, residents, and current practitioners to effortlessly recall information. For example, COVERABCD is an acronym that stands for circulation/capnograph/color, oxygen, ventilation, endotracheal tube, review of equipment, airway, breathing, circulation, and drugs. 4 Runciman et al showed that the use of the acronym COVERABCD could have prevented or mitigated 60% of 2000 anesthetic incidents. 4 Another mnemonic, FAST, used to assess for a stroke, reduced median hospital arrival times by more than an hour. 5
There are hundreds of mnemonics related to medical practice. Collections of those that might be useful for family practitioners and medical residents can be found at the following links:
https://epomedicine.com/medical-mnemonics/
www.oxfordmedicaleducation.com/medical-mnemonics/
Kristyn McKnight, PharmD candidate
Hannah Lutz, PharmD candidate
Tracy Mahvan, MBA, PharmD, BCGP
School of Pharmacy, University of Wyoming, Laramie