Three-Dimensional Virtual Anatomy as a New Approach for Medical Student’s Learning

Most medical and health science schools adopt innovative tools to implement the teaching of anatomy to their undergraduate students. The increase in technological resources for educational purposes allows the use of virtual systems in the field of medicine, which can be considered decisive for improving anatomical knowledge, a requisite for safe and competent medical practice. Among these virtual tools, the Anatomage Table 7.0 represents, to date, a pivotal anatomical device for student education and training medical professionals. This review focuses attention on the potential of the Anatomage Table in the anatomical learning process and clinical practice by discussing these topics based on recent publication findings and describing their trends during the COVID-19 pandemic period. The reports documented a great interest in and a positive impact of the use of this technological table by medical students for teaching gross anatomy. Anatomage allows to describe, with accuracy and at high resolution, organ structure, vascularization, and innervation, as well as enables to familiarize with radiological images of real patients by improving knowledge in the radiological and surgical fields. Furthermore, its use can be considered strategic in a pandemic period, since it ensures, through an online platform, the continuation of anatomical and surgical training on dissecting cadavers.

1187 Adapting Postgraduate Anatomy Education During The COVID-19 Pandemic

Aim A solid understanding of anatomy and its application is crucial to the development of safe surgeons. Cadaveric dissection has traditionally been the gold standard for learning anatomy however the disruption of anatomy teaching from the COVID-19 pandemic has led to a shift in methods for teaching both undergraduate and postgraduate students. We sought to design, deliver and evaluate a virtual MRCS anatomy revision course for doctors led by anatomy demonstrators. Method A series of six high yield revision sessions on the anatomy of the abdomen and pelvis, upper limb, lower limb, thorax and head and neck were organised on a virtual platform. The course was advertised on social media targeting groups for doctors. These sessions were taught by a senior anatomy demonstrator and previous examiner for the MRCS. This was followed by a series of interactive single best answer questions. The answers were then discussed in a subsequent session facilitated by current junior anatomy demonstrators. Feedback on student satisfaction, relevance and content of each session was collated. Results Online feedback was completed by 263 students and was universally positive. Our results highlight the relevance of the sessions for doctors preparing for both MRCS part A and B examinations. Our aim is to develop this teaching series to create an environment where postgraduate learners feel supported and can build on pre-existing knowledge. Conclusions Virtual anatomy teaching can be a sustainable method of supporting the learning process of doctors preparing for surgical examinations, complementing independent study, virtual dissection and hands on cadaveric dissection.

Virtual Anatomy Classes among the First and Second Year Medical and Dental Students of a Medical College: A Descriptive Cross-sectional Study

Introduction: The pandemic of COVID-19 affected every single person in the world. This pandemic also affected the academics of medical and dental colleges of Nepal. In these conditions, the virtual study was used as an emergency measure during the COVID-19 period, with an adaptation to the “new normal” to deliver preclinical medical education. This has brought both challenges and opportunities to medical education. The objective of the study is to find out whether the anatomy virtual classes were helpful among the first and second year medical and dental students of a medical college. Methods: The descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on 206 first and second-year medical and dental students of a medical college between 1st May 2021-31st May 2021 after getting the ethical clearance from the Institutional Review Committee (reference no. 0504202109). The convenient sampling was done. The data were analyzed with Statistical Package for the Social Sciences 20 version. Point estimate at 95% Confidence Interval was calculated along with frequency and percentage for binary data. Results: Out of the total 206 students, 173 (84%) (78.99-89.01 at 95% Confidence Interval) found that virtual anatomy classes were not helpful for the study of the anatomy classes. Conclusions: From the study, we conclude that more than half of the students found that virtual classes were not helpful for the study of anatomy classes. Students have difficulty in studying dissection, cadaveric, and embryological structures via virtual classes. Physical class is better for studying anatomy than virtual classes for medical and dental students.

The Anatomy Table – Is it the Future Learning Tool for Regional Anaesthesiologists?

Cadaveric dissection has been the main stay of anatomy training for regional anaesthesia over the years. Advent of advance visualisation hardware and software has revolutionised anatomy teaching and it is only a matter of time before this technology transcends into regional anaesthesia training. This article demonstrates the innumerable capabilities of virtual dissection table using one specific use case- the supraclavicular approach to the brachial plexus block. Keywords: Simulation, Virtual dissection, Virtual anatomy