PLAB Study Guide 2026
Everything you need to pass the PLAB exam in one place: the exam format, every topic to study, real practice questions with explanations, flashcards, and full-length practice tests. Free, no sign-up needed.
📋 PLAB Exam Format at a Glance
📚 PLAB Topics to Study (19)
✍️ Sample PLAB Questions & Answers
1. What is the first-line treatment for community-acquired pneumonia in an otherwise healthy adult in the United States?
For community-acquired pneumonia in healthy adults without comorbidities, amoxicillin or azithromycin (for penicillin-allergic patients) is recommended as first-line outpatient therapy.
2. Which feature most clearly distinguishes a manic episode from a hypomanic episode in bipolar disorder?
Mania, unlike hypomania, causes marked functional impairment, may require hospitalization, and can include psychotic features.
3. Which anticoagulant requires regular INR monitoring?
Warfarin requires regular INR (International Normalized Ratio) monitoring because it has a narrow therapeutic index and its effect is influenced by diet, medications, and individual metabolism.
4. A 40-year-old alcohol-dependent man presents 48 hours after his last drink with agitation, tremor, diaphoresis, and tachycardia. What is the most serious complication to anticipate?
Delirium tremens typically emerges 48–72 hours after alcohol cessation and carries significant mortality without prompt treatment with benzodiazepines.
5. Who recognizes the PLAB certification?
The PLAB certification is officially recognized by the General Medical Council (GMC), which is the regulatory body for doctors in the United Kingdom. Successful completion of the PLAB test is a mandatory requirement for international medical graduates to apply for GMC registration and practice medicine in the UK.
6. A 4-year-old child presents with a widespread purpuric rash, arthritis, colicky abdominal pain, and haematuria. What is the most likely diagnosis?
Henoch-Schönlein Purpura (IgA vasculitis) is the most common childhood vasculitis, characterized by the tetrad of palpable purpura (predominantly lower limbs/buttocks), arthritis, colicky abdominal pain, and renal involvement (haematuria).
🎯 Free PLAB Practice Tests
📖 PLAB Guides & Articles
What Practice Test Geeks adds beyond an AI chat for PLAB
An AI chatbot can quiz you, but it can't reproduce the exam conditions or keep your record. Here you get:
- A timed, full-length PLAB mock exam — 180 questions in 180 minutes with a 65% pass mark, modeled on the official exam's question count and time limit, followed by a score report broken down by exam domain.
- A fixed PLAB question bank: the same test every attempt, so your score is comparable from one try to the next instead of changing with every regenerated quiz.
- Progress saved on your device: completed tests, scores and missed questions stay in My Progress, so you can retake only what you got wrong.
- A printable PLAB cheat sheet you can print or save as a PDF.
- PLAB flashcards built from the same question bank.
- Free PLAB practice tests with the correct answer shown after each question.
How this page was made: written with AI tools and published by Nathan Beja, founder of Practice Test Geeks, who is responsible for its content. Exam facts are checked against the official sources listed below. Not reviewed by a subject-matter expert. Editorial policy
Sources & references
Exam facts on this page (fees, format, dates, passing scores) are checked against these official sources; the date is our last check. Editorial policy
- gmc-uk.org — Fees, retake policy, score validity, exam format, time limit, test delivery, test dates, score release, exam dates, passing score · verified Oct 2026