Innovative Preservation and Training Utility of Chemically Preserved Swine Viscera for Veterinary Surgical Education

Abstract

The use of live animals during surgical practical classes exposes students to stressful situations that are often common in the operating room. However, this practice can generate a negative emotional state and hinder the student's cognitive mechanisms, causing different degrees of dissatisfaction and being detrimental to the learning process. Research involving alternative methods for diaeresis and synthesis training has already been carried out with promising outcomes, providing low-cost preserved anatomical pieces. Thus, the aim of the present study was to analyze the anatomical viability of chemically preserved swine viscera for operative techniques training and to evaluate the acceptance of students facing this educational approach, using viscera subjected to plastic bag vacuum conditioning in two different ways of storage: room temperature (20 to 25ºC) and refrigerated (0 to 6ºC). Thirty-six jejunum segments and 36 urinary bladders from swine were fixed in absolute ethanol (AE) for 30 days and subsequently preserved in sodium chloride hypersaturated solution (SCHS) for seven days. At the end of the fixation and preservation periods, the samples were placed in vacuum plastic bags and divided into two groups containing 18 urinary bladders and 18 jejunum segments each. After 60 days of storage, the samples were used for surgical technique classes. The results showed good acceptance by the participating students; the technique proved to be safe, has low cost, and has an easy implementation in terms of both preservation solutions and storage.