APMLE Part II case studies
APMLE Part II · Put your knowledge to work in context.
APMLE Part II is the second computer-based multiple-choice component of the American Podiatric Medical Licensing Examination sequence, taken by podiatric medical students and graduates who are working toward licensure to practice podiatric medicine and surgery in the United States. It follows successful completion of Part I and is designed to test whether a candidate can apply basic and clinical science to realistic patient scenarios rather than simply recall isolated facts. The APMLE Part II case studies are 5 cases and about 2,385 words.
1Necrotizing Infection Versus Cellulitis in a Diabetic Foot
A 58-year-old man with type 2 diabetes (HbA1c 9.8%), peripheral neuropathy, and a 3-day history of a painful right foot presents with fever of 38.9 C, heart rate 118, and BP 102/64. The plantar midfoot is swollen, dusky, and exquisitely tender out of proportion to a small 1 cm plantar ulcer.
585 words, about 3 min2Antibiotic Selection in a Penicillin-Allergic Patient with MRSA Risk
A 45-year-old woman presents with a 2-day-old, 2 cm erythematous, warm, tender lesion on the lateral malleolus with a central fluctuant area and surrounding induration, after an insect bite. She reports a 'severe penicillin allergy' - as a child she developed a rash but no swelling or breathing difficulty.
502 words, about 3 min3Charcot Neuroarthropathy Versus Osteomyelitis After Minor Trauma
A 62-year-old woman with long-standing type 2 diabetes and known peripheral neuropathy presents 10 days after twisting her right ankle. She has a warm, swollen, erythematous midfoot with a temperature 3 C higher than the contralateral foot.
474 words, about 2 min4Anticoagulation and Timing of Surgery for an Infected Diabetic Foot Ulcer
A 70-year-old man with atrial fibrillation on apixaban, type 2 diabetes, and peripheral arterial disease (ABI 0.6) presents with a deep, malodorous plantar ulcer with exposed tendon and surrounding cellulitis. He is afebrile but has a WBC of 14,000 and a CRP of 80.
429 words, about 2 min5Informed Consent and Scope of Practice for a Minor Procedure
A 16-year-old presents with an ingrown toenail and paronychia. He is accompanied by his mother, who consents to a partial nail avulsion with matricectomy.
395 words, about 2 min