The Rx Bricks Podcast
Your High-Yield Med Content on the Go
Build your foundation of medical knowledge and close your learning gaps brick by brick. We’re turning our high-yield multimedia learning library, Rx Bricks, into an immersive audio experience—so you can turn downtime into high-yield learning time.
Get the upper edge and listen for free wherever you get your podcasts.
Latest Episodes
Substance use disorder (SUD) refers to a pattern of substance use—be it nicotine, cannabis, cocaine, or something else—that causes significant impairment or distress to the user. SUD is prevalent and growing in the United States and around the world. People of any age may be at risk for developing a substance use disorder. But exposure…
Listen »
Stimulant medications are drugs that increase alertness and attention. They also elevate heart rate, blood pressure, and respiratory rate. Stimulants are used to treat many conditions, including attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), chronic lethargy, narcolepsy, and obesity. Examples of stimulants include caffeine, amphetamines (such as dextroamphetamine), methylphenidate, and modafinil. Cognitive-enhancing drugs serve a similar purpose, increasing memory,…
Listen »
If you’ve studied the hematopoietic system malignancies—all the leukemias, lymphomas, and plasma cell disorders—you probably feel like you’ve been hit with the good old medical school fire hose. Now’s a good time to take a step back from all the details, make sure that you remember the underlying framework, and pull together some information that…
Listen »
Substance use disorder (SUD) refers to a pattern of substance use—be it nicotine, cannabis, cocaine, or something else—that causes significant impairment or distress to the user. SUD is prevalent and growing in the United States and around the world. People of any age may be at risk for developing a substance use disorder. But exposure…
Listen »
Megaloblast. Now there’s a word you don’t hear every day. The root -blast (from the Greek blastos, meaning germ or bud) may be somewhat familiar since we talk about blast cells (very young hematopoietic precursor cells) in hematology. And megalo- (from the Greek megas, meaning large or great) is also used fairly frequently, as in splenomegaly (enlargement…
Listen »
Blood glucose is proof that you can have too much of a good thing. While glucose serves a critical role as fuel for many of our bodily functions, it must remain in a very tightly controlled range. If the level goes too low, you can fall into a coma. If glucose is too high, damage…
Listen »
Gallstones are the hardened precipitates—“stones”—of the substrates found in bile. The liver makes bile to help digest fats, and the bile is stored in the gallbladder. When there is an excess of a particular substance in the bile (eg, cholesterol or unconjugated bilirubin), gallstones form in the gallbladder. Gallstones can be as small as a…
Listen »
Normal blood pressure keeps us alive. It’s the force that moves blood throughout our circulatory system, ensuring that oxygen and nutrients reach our organs and tissues and that waste products are eliminated. When we hear the word hypertension—high blood pressure—we know this describes the blood flow exerting too much force against blood vessel walls. Pulmonary…
Listen »
Macroscopic Skin Lesions A thorough skin examination should be performed annually to assess for new or changing macroscopic skin lesions. It is critically important to be able to identify and describe normal and abnormal skin and to note your findings carefully, because a change in an existing skin lesion is the most common sign of…
Listen »
Have you ever cut your finger, bumped your head, or fallen and scraped your knee? While you were cursing your clumsiness or bad luck, your body got straight to work healing the injury, relying on the wondrous process of acute inflammation. Shortly after your injury, you most likely experienced some or all of the cardinal…
Listen »