Egyptian Board Thoracic Diseases study guide
Egyptian Board Thoracic Diseases · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The Egyptian Board in Thoracic Diseases is a postgraduate qualification for physicians specialising in pulmonary medicine. It is intended for chest physicians, respiratory trainees, and general internists who wish to demonstrate advanced competence in the diagnosis and management of respiratory disorders. The Egyptian Board Thoracic Diseases study guide has 10 sections and about 4,716 words.
01Respiratory Physiology and Pathophysiology
This domain tests the physiology behind common thoracic findings: respiratory mechanics, gas exchange, acid–base balance and oxygen delivery. Board vignettes usually ask you to interpret an arterial blood gas, distinguish hypoventilation from shunt, or explain why a patient remains hypoxaemic despite supplemental oxygen.
492 words, about 2 min02Pulmonary Diagnostic Procedures and Imaging
This domain examines whether you can choose and interpret pulmonary function tests, arterial gases, chest imaging and bronchoscopic sampling. The Board favours pattern recognition plus technical caveats: when spirometry is acceptable, when a bronchodilator response is significant, what a tree-in-bud CT pattern means, and when EBUS-TBNA is preferred over blind biopsy.
465 words, about 2 min03Obstructive Airway Diseases (Asthma, COPD, Bronchiectasis)
This domain tests diagnosis, severity assessment and long-term management of asthma, COPD and bronchiectasis. Egyptian Board questions often use exacerbation scenarios: decide the treatment setting, choose inhaler therapy, identify when antibiotics or NIV are indicated, and avoid outdated SABA-only asthma care.
431 words, about 2 min04Pulmonary Infections (Tuberculosis, Pneumonia, Fungal and Parasitic Disease)
This domain covers tuberculosis, community- and hospital-acquired pneumonia, fungal disease and parasitic pulmonary infections. The exam tests pragmatic diagnosis: which specimen to send, when imaging is enough, how to choose empirical antibiotics, and how to recognise treatment failure or drug resistance.
419 words, about 2 min05Interstitial Lung Diseases and Occupational/Environmental Lung Disease
This domain tests pattern recognition on HRCT, multidisciplinary diagnosis, and exposure history. The Board expects you to distinguish idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis from hypersensitivity pneumonitis, sarcoidosis and occupational pneumoconioses, and to know when immunosuppression is harmful.
401 words, about 2 min06Pulmonary Vascular Disease
This domain tests the classification and management of pulmonary hypertension, including pulmonary arterial hypertension, left heart disease, lung disease, chronic thromboembolic disease and multifactorial causes. The exam favours haemodynamic definitions, vasoreactivity testing and treatment selection by WHO group.
431 words, about 2 min07Thromboembolism and Sleep-Disordered Breathing
This domain tests risk stratification and evidence-based management of venous thromboembolism, plus recognition and treatment of obstructive sleep apnoea and obesity hypoventilation. Expect questions on Wells score, age-adjusted D-dimer, CTPA, thrombolysis, AHI thresholds and CPAP.
416 words, about 2 min08Thoracic Oncology and Pleural Diseases
This domain tests lung cancer histology, staging, molecular testing and pleural fluid interpretation. The Board often combines a pleural effusion with a decision about drainage, or a lung nodule with staging and targeted therapy.
415 words, about 2 min09Respiratory Critical Care and Mechanical Ventilation
This domain tests recognition and management of acute respiratory failure, ARDS, sepsis and ventilator-associated problems. The Board expects lung-protective ventilation settings, plateau pressure targets, prone positioning and safe weaning.
395 words, about 2 min10Pediatric Pulmonology and Respiratory Immunology
This domain tests age-specific respiratory disease: bronchiolitis, childhood asthma, cystic fibrosis, primary ciliary dyskinesia, immunodeficiency and foreign-body aspiration. The Board favours questions on supportive care, when not to give antibiotics, and red flags for underlying immunodeficiency.
851 words, about 4 min