Knowledge of gross anatomy and embryology continues to be important for medical student training. However, the relevance of anatomical knowledge during the preclinical years remains underexplored considering recent revisions to the scoring of the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE). Guided by the framework of cognitive apprenticeship, which conceptualizes the anatomy laboratory as a learning environment that leads to medical student expertise, the focus of this study was on the relationship between the anatomical expertise and clinical expertise of medical students as measured by scores on standardized assessments. Data from 108 medical students who graduated as part of the Class of 2024 at a Southeastern institution were included in the analysis. A multiple linear regression model was created with the predictor variables of Gross Anatomy and Embryology Sub-score on the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME) Comprehensive Basic Science Examination and MCAT Score for each of the following outcome variables: USMLE Step 2 Score; NBME Clinical Science Subject Examination (CSSE) Scores for Medicine, Surgery, Pediatrics, Obstetrics and Gynecology, Psychiatry, Family Medicine, and Clinical Neurology; and NBME Advanced CSSE Score for Emergency Medicine. In the resulting models, Gross Anatomy and Embryology Sub-score was a statistically significant predictor of USMLE Step 2 Score as well as for all NBME CSSE Scores and NBME Advanced CSSE Scores. The findings of this study support cognitive apprenticeship as a theoretical perspective for anatomical sciences education by providing evidence for a relationship between medical students' anatomical expertise and clinical expertise.

Self-efficacy and anatomical knowledge have been shown to be important in the development of medical students. Validated instruments designed to measure the construct of anatomical self-efficacy during the clinical years of medical school are limited. In this study, the Anatomical Self-Efficacy Instrument for Clinical Clerkships (ASEI-CC) was developed, and evidence for the reliability of the scores and the validity of the interpretations of the scores was gathered. The ASEI-CC consisted of 10- Likert-type items designed to measure anatomical self-efficacy, with higher scores indicating higher levels of anatomical self-efficacy. To conduct pilot testing for the ASEI-CC, a sample of 99 medical students rotating through the medicine, surgery, pediatrics, neurology, family medicine, and obstetrics and gynecology clerkships at a Southeastern institution in 2023 was recruited to complete an anonymous survey at the conclusion of an anatomy workshop. In the sample of 99 medical students in this study, the observed means of the scores on the items of the ASEI-CC ranged from 3.84 to 4.37, representing an average response of "fairly confident" to "very confident" on each item. Exploratory factor analysis with principal axis factoring yielded a unidimensional factor structure that explained 62.6% of the variance, with all 10 items having a factor loading greater than 0.4. This study provides evidence that supports the reliability of scores and the validity of the interpretations of scores on the ASEI-CC and extends scholarship about the anatomical self-efficacy of medical students to the clinical years of the medical school curriculum.

This pioneering study explored the eye movement classifications among expert and novice anatomists in a gross anatomy cadaver lab. Participants wore eye-tracking glasses while identifying tagged anatomical structures in a prosected donor body. As expected, our initial findings indicated that participants with greater expertise had shorter completion times. Also, the normalized fixation features of participants showed that as expertise levels increased, there were fewer fixations with shorter durations. This suggests that participants with greater expertise employed distinctive visual attention strategies. We navigated several challenges related to the authentic environment, highlighting the need to explore further improving methodological and data analysis techniques. These preliminary findings have implications for informing pedagogical approaches leveraging digitization without sacrificing the 3D environment.

The topic of vertical integration of the basic and clinical sciences is an area of great concern and active investigation in medical education. To explore the feasibility of integrating basic sciences into the clinical phase of medical education, gross anatomy was selected as an appropriate discipline. Anatomy faculty, clerkship directors, medical students, and graduate students developed case-based anatomy modules with a design consistent with the principles of self-directed learning. This pilot study aimed to explore medical student responses to the integration of anatomy sessions during clinical clerkships. One-hour anatomy sessions were conducted during rotations of the following clerkships: internal medicine, pediatrics, family medicine, neurology, obstetrics and gynecology, and general surgery during the academic year 2022-2023. Each session consisted of four case-based stations. Voluntary, anonymous surveys were distributed at the end of each session. Descriptive statistics of survey responses from the 490 participants revealed the overall ratings of the anatomy sessions to be above an 8.50 on a scale of 1.00 (low) to 9.00 (high). A small q thematic analysis of the open-ended survey questions revealed the following themes: relevance of clinical correlations presented, a timely review of anatomical content, appreciation for the collaborative setting and interactivity among the participants, and constructive feedback regarding areas needing improvement. Students reported a high overall rating of the anatomy sessions and shared positive comments about these vertically integrated anatomy experiences. With a reduction in the amount of anatomy instruction during the pre-clinical years and limited exposure during the clinical years, anatomy sessions like the ones proposed could allow for the fluid incorporation of gross anatomy across all 4 years of medical school.

Artificial intelligence (AI) technologies are poised to become an increasingly important part of education in the anatomical sciences. OpenAI has also introduced generative pretrained transformers (GPTs), which are customizable versions of the standard ChatGPT application. There is little research that has explored the potential of GPTs to serve as intelligent tutoring systems for learning the anatomical sciences. The objective of this study was to describe the design and explore the performance of AnatomyGPT, a customized artificial intelligence application intended for anatomical sciences education. The AnatomyGPT application was configured with GPT Builder by uploading open-source textbooks as knowledge sources and by providing pedagogical instructions for how to interact with users. The performance of AnatomyGPT was compared with ChatGPT by evaluating the responses of both applications to prompts of the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME) sample items with respect to accuracy, rationales, and citations. AnatomyGPT achieved high scores on the NBME sample items for Gross Anatomy, Embryology, Histology, and Neuroscience and scored comparably to ChatGPT. In addition, AnatomyGPT provided several citations in the responses that it generated, while ChatGPT provided none. Both GPTs provided rationales for all sample items. The customized AnatomyGPT application demonstrated preliminary potential as an intelligent tutoring system by generating responses with increased citations as compared with the standard ChatGPT application. The findings of this study suggest that instructors and students may wish to create their own custom GPTs for teaching and learning anatomy. Future research is needed to further develop and characterize the potential of GPTs for anatomy education.

Objectives Approximating the maxillary sinus natural ostium's (MSNO) natural position during anterograde surgery is challenging, as only a single visual “landmark,” the maxillary line, is routinely offered to guide the identification of the MSNO in three‐dimensional space. Despite almost 40 years of endoscopic sinus surgery (ESS) experience in North America, maxillary recirculation and discontinuity between the natural and surgical ostia are commonly encountered during revision ESS. Consequently, we feel an additional visual landmark would assist in localizing the MSNO with or without image guidance. In this study, we aim to provide a second reliable landmark in the sinonasal cavity. Methods We present a cadaveric anatomical landmark series that provides a second visual landmark for the MSNO, which we have labeled the transverse turbinate line (TTL): a 2‐millimeter zone of confidence for the craniocaudal positioning of the MSNO that can be combined with the anteroposterior (AP) landmark of the maxillary line. Results In our study, 40 cadaveric sinuses were dissected, and the TTL was found to correspond consistently with the zone between the superior and inferior aspects of the MSNO. Conclusion We anticipate that this second relational landmark may decrease the time required for anterograde access to the MSNO in trainees, increase the accuracy of identification, and translate to lower long‐term recirculation and maxillary surgery failure rates. Level of Evidence NA Laryngoscope , 133:3285–3291, 2023

The modified and simplified SCE method can make a "Thiel cadaver" more efficiently. Using a SCE cadaver, a learner can exercise hand-on skill in a near-real condition without psychological pressure and learning time can be individualized, which greatly increases the beginning learner's confidence to master the procedure before working with patients. One SCE cadaver can be shared in various procedure training. Further, quantitative studies will be designed to optimize procedure learning. Integrating SCE cadavers into current simulation training programs appears both feasible and desirable.

Streaming of live faculty anatomy dissections was utilized to teach clinically relevant gross anatomy to first-year Physician Assistant students during the summer of 2021 to correlate lecture with relevant dissection part. The online anatomy dissections by faculty were integrated with PowerPoint presentations before onsite dissection laboratory periods by the students. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The PA students viewed the dissections via zoom sessions during lecture hours coordinated by lecture presenter. During their six weeks of study, each session was scheduled for one hour lecture, followed by 3 hours of dissections. At the beginning of each session, ten quiz questions relative to prior sessions were asked to enhance students' retention and recall. Following the daily online practical quizzes, students watched step by step dissection and power point lecture integrated with relevant slides and/or cross-sections. During three hour laboratory time of each daily session, students were divided into small groups to dissect anatomy region for that day assisted by faculty member. Sixty four percent of the PA Class of 2023 completed an anonymous electronic survey at the conclusion of the course. The online survey of the enrolled PA students (n=40) in their first-year training identified that the online dissections and the teaching format were extremely beneficial to their learning. Ninety seven percent of the students strongly agreed or agreed that the streaming of anatomy dissections was helpful in learning the assigned anatomy. Ninety five percent of the students strongly agreed or agreed that integrated power point presentations were beneficial, and Ninety five percent of the students strongly agreed or agreed that daily integrated quizzes (self-assessment modules) were beneficial for their retention and recall. Although setting up online dissections and integrating the streaming dissections with relevant power points were time-intensive, the teaching faculty viewed the online teaching experiences as effective means to further develop students' knowledge base of anatomy education.

Streaming of faculty anatomy dissections was utilized to teach clinically relevant gross anatomy to first‐year Physician Assistant students during the summer of 2020 to address Covid‐19 pandemic social distancing guidelines. The online anatomy dissections by faculty replaced the traditional practice of onsite dissection laboratory periods by the students.

Dental Gross Anatomy is an integrated course during the first semester of dental education at the University Of Florida College Of Dentistry. The gross anatomy of the human body is still primarily learned in the anatomy laboratory. The purpose of this study was to assess the effectives of creating mini‐peer teaching sessions within assigned anatomy laboratory times.Multiple mini‐peer teaching sessions (MPTs) were created and held during the assigned anatomy sessions for first year dental students. During each MPT session, students at assigned tables were clustered into two stations (groups A and B). Each station consisted of students assigned to six tables; there were six to seven students presented per table. One student at each table was assigned as a teacher who was responsible for demonstrating dissected structures that their group had dissected.Other members at the assigned tables rotated every six to seven minutes intervals to learn about the anatomy at the other tables. After first round was concluded in groups A and B, the students were switched between A and B stations and a new teacher was designated to demonstrate the assigned anatomy. The MPTs allowed each student to observe the assigned cadaveric anatomy at all 12 tables during a given MPT.Students’ perspective of the value of the dental MPT, sessions were extremely positive. An online survey taken during 2018 Fall semester from the First‐Year Dental students identified that the MPTs were extremely effective. Ninety eight percent of the students strongly agreed that their class mates, serving as peer teachers, were beneficial to their learning. Ninety five percent believed rotating to different stations, with different peer teachers, facilitated their learning of the assigned anatomy. Qualitative data further confirmed the positive impact students placed on the MPTs. Although setting up individual MPTs is time‐intensive, the teaching faculty view the MPTs experiences as a means to further enrich student’s knowledge‐base of anatomy.Support or Funding InformationUniversity of Florida, College of Medicine

Anatomy retention and recall (R & R) boot camps were created to strengthen the learning of clinically relevant gross anatomy by first‐year Physician Assistant (PA) students. The boot camps were held in order that students could self‐assess their level of anatomical knowledge and have time to review areas that they might be need more time to learn. The anatomy R & R boot camps replaced the traditional practice practical that usually was held the day before the anatomy practical, thereby, lessening the possibility that student could significantly increase their level of knowledge a day before a given practical. Each boot camp session was scheduled for 1 hour; students were asked to identify tagged structures at 35 stations during the first 35 minutes; students then had ~ 30 minutes to immediately review and gain feedback on what clues were used to identify a given structure. Students' perspective of the value of the PA anatomy R & R boot camps have been extremely positive. An online survey taken this by PA students in the first year of training identified that the boot camps: 1) improved their recall and improved their retention (98% strongly agreed or agreed); 2) increased their confidence in their ability to identify structures and functions (95% strongly agreed or agreed); 3) helped their learning of anatomy (95% strongly agreed or agreed); and 4) provided objective feedback on their level of knowledge (95% strongly agreed or agreed. The anatomy teaching faculty viewed the boot camps experiences as a positive means to further enrich students' knowledge base of anatomy. This study was approved by the UF Internal Review Board # IRB201800800. This abstract is from the Experimental Biology 2019 Meeting. There is no full text article associated with this abstract published in The FASEB Journal .

The first semester of anatomy at the University of Florida College of Medicine is based upon teaching relevant anatomy as it relates to the physical exam and the utilization of prosections in the anatomy laboratory to see and learn the assigned anatomy. With a class size of ~140 students and with 4 hours allotted to an anatomy laboratory experience per week, students are divided into 10 teams; each team of students are further divided into an orange group and a blue group. Students of 2 groups of the 20 groups decide which of 14 lab sessions they will serve as peer teachers. To prepare for their peer‐teaching experience, they meet a week prior to the selected laboratory session with the teaching faculty to learn the assigned prosected anatomy. Students are expected to practice teaching the assigned anatomy and present one or more 15 minute teaching sessions to the faculty. On the day of an anatomy lab, there were 4 stations of student teachers. Members of the first‐year class rotate to different stations every 15 minutes. The students' perspective of the value of the peer‐teaching has been very positive. An online survey taken this past academic year by students in the first 3 years of training identified that the student peer‐teaching: 1) was beneficial to their learning of assigned laboratory anatomy (84% strongly agreed or agreed) and 2) facilitated their learning of the assigned anatomy by rotating to different stations with different peer teachers (84% strongly agreed or agreed). Quantitative data of the survey and course debriefings further support the view that student peer‐teaching positively augments student learning of anatomy. While some students stated they would be more comfortable with a member of the faculty to teach them, a greater number of students thoroughly enjoyed being taught by their peers; they believed it was the best part of anatomy. In fact, student peer‐teaching is used as a recruitment feature by first and second years when they interact with perspective candidates.This abstract is from the Experimental Biology 2018 Meeting. There is no full text article associated with this abstract published in The FASEB Journal.

Anatomy retention and recall (R & R) boot camps were created to further strengthen student's learning of clinically‐relevant gross anatomy. Three boot camps were given generally during a 2 week period prior to an anatomy practical. Importantly, the boot camps were spaced so students could self‐assess their level of anatomical knowledge and have time to review areas that they might be need more time to learn. The anatomy R & R boot camps replaced the traditional practice practical that usually was held the day before the anatomy practical, thereby, lessening the possibility that student could significantly increase their level of knowledge a day before a given practical. Each boot camp session was scheduled for 1 hour; students were asked to identify tagged structures at 25 stations during the first 30 minutes; students then had ~ 30 minutes to immediately review and gain feedback on what clues were used to identify a given structure. Students' perspective of the value of the anatomy R & R boot camps have been overwhelmingly positive. An online survey taken this past academic year by students in the first 3 years of training identified that the boot camps: 1) enhanced their recall and improved their retention (99% strongly agreed); 2) increased their confidence in their ability to identify structures and functions (81% strongly agreed); 3) facilitated their learning of anatomy (99% strongly agreed); and 4) provided feedback on their level of knowledge (88% strongly agreed). Qualitative data further confirmed the positive impact students placed on the boot camps. Although setting up individual boot camps was time‐intensive, the teaching faculty viewed the boot camps experiences as a means to further enrich students' knowledge base of anatomy. This abstract is from the Experimental Biology 2018 Meeting. There is no full text article associated with this abstract published in The FASEB Journal .

Many medical schools have undergone curricula revisions and attempted to integrate basic and clinical sciences.In 2012, our program at the University of Florida College of Medicine underwent significant curricular reform, transitioning from the standard medical curriculum to a systems-based approach.The teaching of anatomy, clinical skills, radiology, ethics, population health, human behavior, and evidence-based medicine was integrated into one class, "Introduction to Clinical Medicine", which spans 68 weeks in the pre-clerkship curriculum.As a result, there was a reduction of anatomy teaching from 166 to 120 hours.Our curriculum integration demonstrates opportunities for enhanced teaching including increasing peer learning, incorporating multidisciplinary case presentations, and allowing for a deliberate overlap and layering of anatomy education across two years of medical school.This paper describes our reflection on the effect of the curriculum change on student learning.Five years after implementation of these changes shows that our efforts also illustrate the challenges inherent to curricular integration including scheduling constraints, unclear sources of financial support, apprehension about the effect on future National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME) scores, and difficulty assessing which areas a student needs to remediate within a failed integrated course.Overall, the integration of anatomy with other classes into a revised course at our College of Medicine has been well received and successful.

The effect of a low Na+, high K+ diet on Na+,K(+)-ATPase levels in cochlear lateral wall tissues was investigated in laboratory rats by using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The low Na+, high K+ diet induced high aldosterone plasma levels in the animals as well as changes in plasma cation levels. Animals that received a low Na+, high K+ diet demonstrated a statistically significant (97%) increase in Na+,K(+)-ATPase levels in the stria vascularis when compared to animals that received a control diet. This increase in strial Na+,K(+)-ATPase levels was blocked only 70% by administration of the aldosterone antagonist, spironolactone. Findings therefore indicate that strial Na+,K(+)-ATPase may be modulated by both aldosterone and Na+,K+ plasma levels. Na+,K(+)-ATPase levels in the spiral ligament were not affected by the experimental treatment. These findings suggest that spiral ligament Na+,K(+)-ATPase levels may be regulated by factors other than aldosterone and Na+,K+ plasma levels. This study provides further insight into the mechanisms of the beneficial effects of salt restriction and potassium loading in patients with Méniére's disease.

Anatomy and physiology are taught in community colleges, liberal arts colleges, universities, and medical schools. The goals of the students vary, but educators in these diverse settings agree that success hinges on learning concepts rather than memorizing facts. In this article, educators from across the postsecondary educational spectrum expand on several points: (1) There is a problem with student perception that anatomy is endless memorization, whereas the ability to manage information and use reasoning to solve problems are ways that professionals work. This misperception causes students to approach the subject with the wrong attitude. (2) The process of learning to use information is as important as the concepts themselves. Using understanding to explain and make connections is a more useful long‐term lesson than is memorization. Anatomy should be presented and learned as a dynamic basis for problem solving and for application in the practice and delivery of quality health care. (3) Integration of form and function must be explicit and universal across all systems. (4) Using only models, images, audiovisuals, or computers cannot lead students to the requisite reasoning that comes from investigative dissection of real tissue. (5) Some undergraduate courses require students to memorize excessive musculoskeletal detail. (6) Learning tissue biology is a particular struggle for medical students who have no background from an undergraduate course. (7) Medical professors and students see benefits when students have taken undergraduate courses in anatomy, histology, and physiology. If medical schools suggest these electives to applicants, medical students might arrive better prepared and, thus, be able to learn clinical correlations more efficiently in the limited allocated time of medical school curricula. Anat Rec (New Anat) 269:69–80, 2002. © 2002 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.

Free calcium concentration (CCa2+) profiles were evaluated in perilymph, endolymph, marginal cells, spiral ligament and blood serum of adrenalectomized (ADX) rats. Free CCa2+ was significantly greater in perilymph and significantly reduced in the serum of the ADX animals as compared to sham-operated animals. In addition, higher levels of free CCa2+ were found in the spiral ligament in ADX animals. Free CCa2+ did not appear to be affected by ADX in marginal cells and endolymph. These data suggest that marked reductions in endogenous levels of corticosteroids may have a systematic effect on free CCa2+ that is detectable in blood serum as well as cochlear fluids and tissues.

The ultrastructural morphology of the interface region between the stria vascularis (SV) and spiral ligament (SL) was examined in the neonatal rat cochlea via transmission electron microscopy. At postnatal day (PND) 3, morphology of both basal cells and fibrocytes was simple and immature. Only a small number of fibrocytes was observed in the SL. Intercellular junctions between basal cells and fibrocytes, and between adjacent fibrocytes, were few. At PND 7, the number of fibrocytes increased, and more organelles appeared within their cytoplasm. From PND 11 to 14, nuclei of the basal cells appeared to be more spindle-shaped and contained more heterochromatin. The cytoplasm of the fibrocytes was pale, and a greater number of cytoplasmic vesicles and mitochondria emerged. More intercellular junctions were observed between basal cells and fibrocytes at the interface region and between fibrocytes in the SL. By PND 21, the morphology of basal cells and fibrocytes and their intercellular junctionsappeared to be adult-like. These morphological observations correlate with previous reports on the functional maturation of the developing rat cochlea.