Learning Of Human Anatomy Research Articles

Modified team‐based learning strategy to improve human anatomy learning: A pilot study at the Universidad del Norte in Barranquilla, Colombia

As part of an institutional program sponsored by the Centre for Teaching Excellence at the Universidad del Norte, Barranquilla, Colombia, we developed an educational research study on two sessions of human anatomy in which we combined team-based learning (TBL) and the use of iPads. Study data included the TBL, assessments applied during the course, student's grades on mid-term examinations and students' perceptions of their experiences. Students reported a positive attitude toward the use of the TBL sessions, and the results showed a significant improvement in their learning between the first and second sessions. Significantly positive correlations (P < 0.05) were obtained between (a) the individual students' readiness test performance 1 and mid-term examination 1, (b) the individual readiness test performances from Session 1 to Session 2, and (c) the group readiness test performances from the first and second sessions. These results point to positive learning experiences for these students. Analyses of the students' reflections on their activities also pointed toward future challenges.

Drawings as snapshots of student cellular anatomy understanding

undisputable. However, a combination of these two aspects in teaching and learning human anatomy seems to be unexplored. The Medical Council of India does not mandate the use of AV in the dissection hall (DH) and no study was available in current literature on the effectiveness of AV aids in the DH. Therefore, the current study was undertaken. What was tried? Audiovisual aids were introduced in our department to assist students in cadaveric dissection via live streaming and projection. It comprised of two high-definition Sony! video cameras, wireless microphones with audio-amplifiers and speakers. The video switcher was connected to ten 34-inch LCD panels mounted adjacent to dissection tables. Each dissection session of 2 hours was divided into a pre-dissection workshop of 15 minutes (for stepwise demonstration of dissection in a pre-dissected cadaver), a dissection session of 1.5 hours and a debriefing session of 15 minutes (for discussing the region dissected in nutshell). The effectiveness of AV aids was assessed by two methods in 127 medical undergraduates; first by questionnaire and second by comparing their performance in term-end examinations with that of a previous group, who were taught without using AV aids. Written consent was obtained from students. What lessons were learned? Responding to the questionnaire, 125 (98%) students said that the AV system in the DH facilitated the overall understanding of human anatomy, 119 (93.7%) felt that both the pre-dissection workshops and the post-dissection debriefing are useful and 99 (78%) wanted it to be used in every DH session. Common drawbacks were difficulty in orientation to cadavers (63/49.60%) and difficulty in comprehension (20/15.74%). Although 126 (99.2%) students said image and sound qualities were good, 66 (55.9%) felt that camera and microphone handling by instructors requires more expertise. Feedback from students was used to improve the use of the system. Students performed better in both theory (mean scores: 46.82 ! 9.41% and 51.03 ! 8.79%) and practical examinations (mean scores: 49.14 ! 8.82% and 51.91 ! 8.35%) when AV aids were used. Student’s t-test revealed that the difference in performance was statistically significant at p < 0.05. Hence, DH teaching of human anatomy can be rendered more effective by use of AV aids; especially in the current scenario of teacher to student ratios in India and for the time that is available to medical undergraduates for mastering human anatomy. REFERENCE

Avaliação da percepção de discentes do curso médico acerca do estudo anatômico

O presente trabalho objetivou conhecer a percepção dos alunos de Medicina sobre o estudo anatômico, para proposição de medidas que melhorem a aprendizagem dessa disciplina. Trata-se de estudo transversal com abordagem quantitativa e análise descritiva. Os dados foram coletados por meio de um questionário semiestruturado aplicado aos alunos do primeiro, segundo, terceiro, quinto e sexto períodos do curso médico. Para a maioria dos discentes, a aula expositiva facilita o aprendizado em Anatomia, ao passo que o grande número de nomes para memorizar foi apontado como principal fator dificultador. Grupo preponderante utiliza livros-texto e livro atlas, raramente tendo contato com peças naturais, e 82,59% dos acadêmicos não se sentem satisfeitos com o seu conhecimento anatômico. Portanto, no contexto atual de aumento da carga curricular do curso médico e redução do tempo dispensado à Anatomia, surge o desafio de examinar a evolução do currículo do curso médico observando a inserção da Anatomia neste processo. É necessário buscar um equilíbrio entre detalhe e segurança, assimilação e aplicabilidade da Anatomia, tendo em vista os diferentes métodos utilizados para o aprendizado da ciência anatômica.

A View Inside from the Surface: Living Anatomy for Medical Illustration Students

Human anatomy with dissection provides an important starting point for students in medical illustration. While they do not have direct patient contact, the student‐cadaver encounter is paramount in their medical education. Cadaver dissection remains the most powerful method of teaching and learning human anatomy: it introduces the illustration student to the tissues and textures of the body; enhances their manual dexterity; emphasizes the concept of biological variation; demonstrates common pathologic changes; and establishes a dynamic foundation for understanding the biological function of the human body. However, cadaver dissection, even when amplified with visuals from advanced imaging modalities, does not enable a student to create an image of the major organs in normal living position within an outline of the human figure based on surface and skeletal anatomy alone.Medical illustration students at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine take a unique course, taught concurrently with anatomy, which focuses on what we call ‘living anatomy.’ This method of illustrating anatomy, taught since the inception of the program in 1911, enables a student to create an illustration of major structures based on surface landmarks and skeletal references found in anatomy textbooks. With this knowledge, accurate relationships are easily preserved when creating educational visuals.

The reliance on unclaimed cadavers for anatomical teaching by medical schools in Africa

The study of gross Anatomy through the use of cadaveric dissections in medical schools is an essential part of the comprehensive learning of human Anatomy, and unsurprisingly, 90% of the surveyed medical schools in Africa used cadaveric dissections. Donated cadavers now make up 80% of the total cadavers in North American medical schools and all the cadavers used for dissection in the United Kingdom are donated. Because the sources of cadavers used in Africa are not clearly known, a questionnaire to gather information on cadavers used at medical schools was designed from the relevant literature and was sent by electronic mail to 123 Anatomy lecturers in 23 African countries (48 medical schools). Fourteen lecturers from 14 medical schools in ten countries responded to the questionnaires. The results indicate that, in most countries, the cadavers are unclaimed bodies from the hospitals and prisons, and the bodies of dead bandits. In South Africa and Zimbabwe, the donations are mostly from the white community, and medical school in the Islamic country of Libya is importing cadavers from India. The lack of knowledge about body donation programes and firmly held cultural and religious burial traditions may explain the lack of bequests from black communities. The use of unclaimed bodies may disproportionally affect people who were homeless and poor, criminals, people with fewer social links, and social outcasts. The Anatomy lecturers felt that there should be broader national awareness programes for body donations, although the benefits of this could take decades to materialize.

Creation of website of the Chair of Normal Anatomy, as an useful tool on human anatomy learning

Nowdays use of Internet increase in a comfortable way by medicine students, medical residents and medical doctors in a friendly way through a great number of web sites for their learning and teaching process in their medicinal studies and duty on their patients.The universities's future challenge are in a continuing technology innovations chances in teaching and learning concepts in medicine as well human anatomy. Creation of website of the Chair of Normal Anatomy has a compile information (in Spanish) about ours human anatomy educational program as generals objectives, specifics objectives, rules, education methods, evaluation methods, notes, notice, our anatomy's classes in word and powerpoint through distance education project and links to anatomy's websiteConclusions: This website would be an useful tool on human anatomy learning and teaching at School of Medicine “Jose Maria Vargas”, Faculty of Medicine, Central University of Venezuela and will try to develop education Web page to enhance resources for members, plus outreach to public.www.med.ucv.ve/telesalud/escuelas/jmv/catedras/anatomia/www.anatomiavargas.3a2.comResearch support by author.

Learning human anatomy through comparative vertebrate anatomy

Studying comparative vertebrate anatomy gives us insights to the design of these animals. Vertebrates exhibit anatomical adaptations to their various and unique environments. An appreciation of human design and function is gained when we compare ourselves to examples of other vertebrates that are considered specialists in the animal kingdom.

SnapAnatomy, a Computer‐Based Interactive Tool for Independent Learning of Human Anatomy

Computer‐aided instruction materials are becoming increasing popular in medical education and particularly in the teaching of human anatomy. This paper describes SnapAnatomy, a new interactive program that the authors designed for independent learning of anatomy. SnapAnatomy is primarily tailored for the beginner student to encourage the learning of anatomy by developing a three‐dimensional visualization of human structure that is essential to applications in clinical practice and the understanding of function. The program allows the student to take apart and to accurately put together body components in an interactive, self‐paced and variable manner to achieve the learning outcome.

Enhancing the longitudinal learning of human anatomy in a ‘patient‐centered learning’ curriculum: integrating lectures, case‐based learning, cadaver dissection, and digital radiologic image navigation and display technology

One of the challenges of teaching human anatomy in a ‘patient-centered learning’ (PCL), problem-based medical curriculum is creating a “continuity of learning” for students that minimizes compartme...

Effectiveness of using blended learning strategies for teaching and learning human anatomy

This study aimed to implement innovative teaching methods--blended learning strategies--that include the use of new information technologies in the teaching of human anatomy and to analyse both the impact of these strategies on academic performance, and the degree of user satisfaction. The study was carried out among students in Year 1 of the biology degree curriculum (human biology profile) at Pompeu Fabra University, Barcelona. Two groups of students were tested on knowledge of the anatomy of the locomotor system and results compared between groups. Blended learning strategies were employed in 1 group (BL group, n = 69); the other (TT group; n = 65) received traditional teaching aided by complementary material that could be accessed on the Internet. Both groups were evaluated using the same types of examination. The average marks presented statistically significant differences (BL 6.3 versus TT 5.0; P < 0.0001). The percentage pass rate for the subject in the first call was higher in the BL group (87.9% versus 71.4%; P = 0.02), reflecting a lower incidence of students who failed to sit the examination (BL 4.3% versus TT 13.8%; P = 0.05). There were no differences regarding overall satisfaction with the teaching received. Blended learning was more effective than traditional teaching for teaching human anatomy.

Students endorse case‐based learning in human anatomy and physiology

How students view the effectiveness of classroom instruction influences both cognitive and affective dimensions of learning. Student viewpoints about case-based learning (CBL) were obtained over a 10 year period in a course in human anatomy and physiology (HAP) where case study analysis was a regular means of learning (n=404 students). Student attitudes were measured on a twelve item survey where the degree of student agreement or disagreement with each item was expressed on a Likert scale. Approximately 80% of students consistently agreed that case study analysis made it easier to learn HAP and deepened or solidified their understanding. 68% agreed that CBL helped them overcome misconceptions in HAP, although this percentage varied considerably from year to year. 79% students consistently agreed that case study analysis made them see the relevance of learning HAP and 74% students agreed that case studies made them curious to learn more advanced concepts in HAP. A high percentage of students consistently found solving the case studies to be challenging (93%) whereas a lower and more variable percentage of students (49%) found the process to be fun. Overall, 84% of students concluded solving case studies was a useful way of learning HAP. These results indicate that students value CBL as a means for facilitating and motivating learning. Together with results that document the performance enhancing effects of CBL, these findings suggest that CBL offers both cognitive and affective benefits to the learning of HAP. Adopting active learning strategies such as case-based learning is an effective means for engaging and promoting student learning.

Photorealistic virtual anatomy based on Chinese Visible Human data

Virtual reality based learning of human anatomy is feasible when a database of 3D organ models is available for the learner to explore, visualize, and dissect in virtual space interactively. In this article, we present our latest work on photorealistic virtual anatomy applications based on the Chinese Visible Human (CVH) data. We have focused on the development of state-of-the-art virtual environments that feature interactive photo-realistic visualization and dissection of virtual anatomical models constructed from ultra-high resolution CVH datasets. We also outline our latest progress in applying these highly accurate virtual and functional organ models to generate realistic look and feel to advanced surgical simulators.

682 Poster Quality assurance in radiation therapy: a tool for human anatomy learning and contouring comparison

682 Poster Quality assurance in radiation therapy: a tool for human anatomy learning and contouring comparison

What price dissection? Dissection literally dissected

Hamlet: Has this fellow no feelings of his business, that he sings at grave-making? Horatio: Custom hath made it in him a property of easiness. (Hamlet Act V, scene i)1...

Learning human anatomy: by dissection or from prosections?

Two matched groups of first-year preclinical medical students studied the gross anatomy of the lower limb by different methods. One group dissected in the traditional manner (as in the existing curriculum) while the other worked according to an experimental programme which excluded dissection by students. Preparatory study guides were supplied to the experimental group and each of their practical classes on soft tissues began with a priming session at which the structures to be encountered were introduced. The instructor then demonstrated these structures to the group on a prosected wet specimen and bones. Thereafter, the students were allowed to handle and discuss the specimens without staff supervision. At the end of the programme, both groups submitted to a 300-item two-choice paper and a practical test. A debriefing questionnaire was also completed by the experimental group. In both tests, the experimental group performed better than the traditional group and the difference was statistically significant (P less than 0.05) in the theory paper. Further, the experimental programme was completed in about 74% of the time taken by the traditional programme. All the participants commented positively on the experimental programme and expressed the opinion that it had helped them understand the lower limb better than dissection had done for the upper limb. These results suggest that working from prosections is a very effective way of learning human gross anatomy. Such a programme is worthy of consideration by departments having to contend with unfavourable student:cadaver ratios and curtailed teaching time.

Learning human anatomy: student preferences of methods in a Nigerian medical school.

The present study evaluates the usefulness, as perceived by students, of the various methods by which anatomical information is presented during the preclinical part of the medical course. Assessments of these learning methods were elicited from a cohort of medical students at the University of Benin by a questionnaire based on their selection of questions to attempt in Anatomy Paper 2 (Essays) of the First Professional examination (= 2nd MB). An algorithm was provided to enable the quantification of the preferences expressed and hence the derivation of a utility index for each learning method. The results showed that reading/private study, formal lectures, informal discussions with peers and practical work were the learning methods from which the students had benefited, in descending order of usefulness. These findings are discussed in the context of the teaching and learning of human anatomy in the particular circumstances studied.

Learning human anatomy: does learning occur during a lecture?

Information uptake during a formal lecture was evaluated using a sample of 43 second-year medical students to whom a topic on human developmental anatomy was presented. The sample was divided into two groups: Blue (group B) (21 students) and Red (group R) (22 students). Prior to the lecture, a pre-test of 20 multiple choice questions was administered to each group. The lecture was then delivered over 50 minutes. Both in its preparation and presentation, the lecture conformed to the principles of programmed instruction. After a 10-minute students' question-and-answer session, a post-test was served. For group B, this was group R's pretest while group R, in turn, received group B's pretest. No question in the pre-test was repeated in the post-test. Intergroup comparisons of pre-test scores and of post-test scores revealed non-significant differences (P greater than 0.05), thus confirming that the pre- and the post-tests were of comparable difficulty. In each group, the mean post-test score was significantly higher than the pre-test score (P less than 0.001). The pooled scores indicated that the percentage mastery of material presented during the lecture increased from -1.8% to 58.4%. These results demonstrate that significant learning can occur during a lecture prepared and delivered in accordance with sound pedagogical principles.