OMSB Physician Exam study guide
OMSB Physician Exam · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The Oman Medical Specialty Board (OMSB) is an autonomous body that develops specialised physicians and assures the competencies of health care professionals in Oman. Among the services it lists for healthcare professionals are OMSB Board examinations, verification and equivalency of certificates, accreditation of CPD activities and occupational classification examinations. The OMSB Physician Exam study guide has 12 sections and about 3,134 words.
01Adult Cardiology
Adult cardiology on the OMSB exam tests pattern recognition under time pressure: acute coronary syndromes, heart failure, arrhythmias, valvular disease and hypertension. STEMI: reperfuse immediately - primary PCI with door-to-balloon ≤90 min, or ≤120 min if the patient must be transferred.
312 words, about 2 min02Anesthesia
The anesthesia component tests preoperative assessment, airway prediction, drug selection, and recognition of two exam favourites: malignant hyperthermia and local anaesthetic systemic toxicity. ASA physical status I–VI: I is healthy, III is severe systemic disease, IV is a constant threat to life, V is moribund and VI is a brain-dead organ donor.
296 words, about 1 min03Biochemistry
Biochemistry questions target core metabolism, rate-limiting enzymes, vitamin deficiencies and inherited metabolic disease, usually presented as a short clinical vignette with an abnormal laboratory pattern. Rate-limiting enzymes worth memorising: phosphofructokinase-1 (glycolysis), fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase (gluconeogenesis), isocitrate dehydrogenase (TCA cycle), glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (HMP shunt), carbamoyl phosphate synthetase I (urea cycle), ALA synthase (haem synthesis) and HMG-CoA reductase (cholesterol).
252 words, about 1 min04Dentistry
Dentistry questions cover caries and periodontal disease, oral potentially malignant disorders, dental trauma and the few situations where antibiotic prophylaxis is still justified. Caries is driven by Streptococcus mutans fermenting sugars; management is risk-based, from fluoride and sealants to restoration.
281 words, about 1 min05Dermatology
Dermatology tests morphological description, recognition of common inflammatory dermatoses, skin cancer screening and severe drug reactions. Macule: flat, <1 cm.
260 words, about 1 min06Emergency Medicine
Emergency medicine questions are resuscitation-focused: cardiac arrest, shock, sepsis, anaphylaxis, trauma and poisoning. Shockable rhythms (VF and pulseless VT): defibrillate, start CPR for 2 minutes, then adrenaline 1 mg every 3–5 minutes, with amiodarone 300 mg after the third shock.
259 words, about 1 min07Family Medicine
Family medicine tests longitudinal care: screening, immunisation, chronic disease targets, behavioural counselling and the primary-care approach to undifferentiated symptoms. Colorectal cancer: start at 45–50 with colonoscopy or faecal testing.
251 words, about 1 min08General Surgery
General surgery tests the acute abdomen, hernia anatomy, gallstone disease, bowel obstruction and common post-operative problems. Appendicitis: periumbilical pain migrating to the right iliac fossa, McBurney tenderness; the Alvarado score combines symptoms, signs and leukocytosis.
264 words, about 1 min09Hematology
Hematology tests anaemia classification, iron studies, haemolysis, haematological malignancy and transfusion-related complications. Microcytic: iron deficiency, thalassaemia, anaemia of chronic disease, sideroblastic anaemia.
224 words, about 1 min10Histopathology
Histopathology tests the laboratory pathway from fixation to diagnosis, the special stains used to demonstrate specific substances, immunohistochemistry panels and the difference between grading and staging. Fixation in 10% neutral buffered formalin, dehydration through graded alcohols, clearing in xylene, paraffin embedding, sectioning at 3–5 µm and staining with haematoxylin and eosin.
246 words, about 1 min11Internal Medicine
Internal medicine questions integrate acid-base interpretation, diabetes emergencies, thyroid disease, chronic kidney disease and common infections. Anion gap = Na − (Cl + HCO3); normal 8–12 mmol/L.
258 words, about 1 min12Microbiology
Microbiology tests organism identification, culture media, antibiotic mechanisms, resistance patterns and sterilisation practice. Gram-positive cocci in clusters: staphylococci; Staphylococcus aureus is coagulase positive.
231 words, about 1 min