Free PLAB 2 Cardiovascular stations
Cardiovascular complaints such as chest pain, palpitations and breathlessness are among the most common presentations in PLAB 2. These stations test a focused cardiac history, red-flag screening for acute coronary syndrome, and clear explanation of the plan.
What PLAB 2 cardiovascular stations cover
Cardiovascular complaints such as chest pain, palpitations and breathlessness are among the most common presentations in PLAB 2. These stations test a focused cardiac history, red-flag screening for acute coronary syndrome, and clear explanation of the plan.
Topics you can practise in these stations include:
- Chest pain
- Chest pain on exertion
- Palpitations and chest fluttering
- Breathlessness
- Worried about having a stroke
- Persistent dry cough on blood-pressure medication
- High blood pressure review
- Blood-test review after starting a blood-pressure tablet
- Newly diagnosed high blood pressure
- Warfarin counselling before discharge
- Warfarin review after a leg clot
- High INR on warfarin after antibiotics
- Vascular risk and smoking cessation before angioplasty
- Leg pain on walking
How to approach a cardiovascular station
Use SOCRATES for chest pain, screen for cardiac risk factors, and explicitly rule out the life-threatening causes before reassuring. Explain investigations such as the ECG and troponin simply, and safety-net clearly.
The underlying structure is the same as any PLAB 2 station: greet and confirm identity, explore the patient's ideas, concerns and expectations early, take a focused history, screen for the red flags below, explain your thinking in plain English, and agree a shared plan with clear safety-netting. See the free PLAB 2 preparation guide for the full study plan.
Red flags to screen for in cardiovascular stations
Examiners reward candidates who actively screen for what must not be missed. In cardiovascular stations, the key red flags include:
- Central crushing chest pain with sweating or radiation (acute coronary syndrome)
- Tearing pain radiating to the back (aortic dissection)
- Pleuritic chest pain with breathlessness (pulmonary embolism)
- Syncope on exertion
- New, severe breathlessness suggesting heart failure
Skills these stations test
The 27 cardiovascular stations break down by skill type as:
- Counselling 13
- History and management 12
- History red flags 2
All 27 free cardiovascular stations
Every station below is free. Click one to sit it as an eight-minute spoken consultation, then get your mark-scheme breakdown.
Counselling 13
- Worried about having a stroke - Mr Donald Depp, 60
- High blood pressure review - stopped medication for swollen ankles - Mrs Eileen Micklethwaite, 60
- Blood-test review after starting a blood-pressure tablet - Kevin Ollerenshaw, 45
- Warfarin counselling before discharge - Mrs Jessica Ravenscroft, 35
- Warfarin review after a leg clot - Hazel Shackleton, 50
- High INR on warfarin after antibiotics - Gary Thirlwell, 52
- Vascular risk and smoking cessation before angioplasty - Mrs Gillian Winterbottom, 50
- Lifestyle after a heart attack - Mr Richard Oxenford, 53
- High cholesterol and starting a statin - Mrs Kate Risley, 65
- Angry after a heart attack - refusing to walk - Margaret Thirlwell, 68
- Refusing warfarin in atrial fibrillation - Mr Daniel Banister, 55
- Abdominal swelling - Mr Oliver Waylon, 58 (heart failure)
- Choosing a replacement heart valve - Mrs Alaric Aldous, 58
History and management 12
- Chest pain - Mr Daniel Cartwright, 47
- Chest pain - James Whitaker, 46
- Chest pain on exertion - Mrs Margaret Bramwell, 60
- Chest pain - Mr Paul Tarrant, 57 (suspected ACS in GP)
- Palpitations and chest fluttering - Mrs Susan Pennington, 62
- Chest pain - Mr Robert Fairfax, 32 (pericarditis)
- Breathlessness - Mr Thomas Driscoll, 59 (heart failure)
- Persistent dry cough on blood-pressure medication - Mr Peter Gerald, 53
- Newly diagnosed high blood pressure - Gerald Postlethwaite, 58
- Leg pain on walking - Mr William Membury, 50 (peripheral arterial disease)
- Sudden back pain - Mr Mark Lockwood, 55
- Recurrent palpitations - Mr Owen Whitlock, 24 (Wolff-Parkinson-White)
History red flags 2
- Lip and tongue swelling - Marwa Haddad, 58
- Sudden tearing chest and back pain - Mr Roland Akhtar, 58
Practise other PLAB 2 specialties
- PLAB 2 Ethical / Communication stations (62)
- PLAB 2 Obstetrics & Gynaecology stations (52)
- PLAB 2 Paediatrics stations (42)
- PLAB 2 Neurology stations (34)
- PLAB 2 Psychiatry stations (31)
- PLAB 2 Gastrointestinal stations (27)
- PLAB 2 Dermatology stations (25)
- PLAB 2 Endocrine stations (24)
- PLAB 2 Musculoskeletal stations (20)
- PLAB 2 Respiratory stations (20)
- PLAB 2 ENT stations (19)
- PLAB 2 Surgical stations (15)
- PLAB 2 Urology stations (15)
- PLAB 2 Medicine stations (14)
- PLAB 2 Genitourinary Medicine stations (12)
- PLAB 2 Infectious Diseases stations (11)
- PLAB 2 Haematology stations (9)
- PLAB 2 Ophthalmology stations (7)
- PLAB 2 Palliative / Pain Medicine stations (6)
- PLAB 2 Breast Surgery stations (2)
Frequently asked questions
What PLAB 2 cardiovascular stations come up?
Plabity's 27 free PLAB 2 cardiovascular stations include presentations such as chest pain, chest pain on exertion, palpitations and chest fluttering, breathlessness, worried about having a stroke, persistent dry cough on blood-pressure medication, high blood pressure review, blood-test review after starting a blood-pressure tablet, newly diagnosed high blood pressure, warfarin counselling before discharge, warfarin review after a leg clot, high inr on warfarin after antibiotics, vascular risk and smoking cessation before angioplasty, leg pain on walking. Each runs as an eight-minute spoken consultation marked to the PLAB rubric.
Are these PLAB 2 cardiovascular stations free?
Yes. All 27 are free to practise. You sign up with an email address, with no card required.
How are the stations marked?
Each station is marked across the three PLAB domains: data gathering, clinical management and interpersonal skills. You get a breakdown of every criterion with quoted evidence from your own consultation, in seconds.
Practise cardiovascular stations free.
27 spoken cardiovascular cubicles, marked to the PLAB rubric. No card, no plan.
Start practising free