Typical brachial plexus: the legacy of a forgotten anatomist, Abram T. Kerr (1873-1938)

The brachial plexus, a complex network of nerves responsible for innervating the upper limb, exhibits remarkable anatomical variations. This editorial explores the composite drawing of a "typical" brachial plexus portrayed by Abram T. Kerr in 1918. This composite drawing of the typical brachial plexus stands as a critical contribution to the field of anatomy and surgery, and encapsulates the most prevalent patterns of formation, branching, and origins within the brachial plexus, offering a statistical map of its common variants. Kerr portrays the typical brachial plexus as a foundational resource for anatomists and medical professionals seeking to navigate the intricate landscape of this neural structure. It serves as a hypothetical model, reflecting the common arrangement of trunks, cords, and branches, shedding light on the typical composition of the plexus observed in most individuals. Beyond being a visual representation, the 'typical' brachial plexus provides a bridge between theoretical knowledge and practical applications, aiding in the identification of variations and deviations in surgical contexts. This composite drawing enhances our comprehension of the intricate and ever-evolving anatomy of the brachial plexus, reinforcing its role as a fundamental reference point for anatomical studies and clinical practice.

Wilhelm Waldeyer as an object - Anatomists as body donors

INTRODUCTION

Berlin anatomist Wilhelm von Waldeyer-Hartz (1836-1921) donated his skull, brain, and hands to his institute. Only the skull survives in the present-day collection. This study investigates the skull itself as much as the historical context of Waldeyer's donation.

METHODS

Physical-anthropological investigation of the remains and historical research.

RESULTS

Waldeyer's main motivation was the donation of his brain to science. While this was the first ever recorded body donation in Berlin, it was not unusual for scientists of his time to donate their brains and/or to investigate brains of fellow scientists to correlate brain morphology to individual traits. Nevertheless, Waldeyer's pupil Hans Virchow expressed reservations dissecting his former boss, reservations that were unknown to him when dissecting others. Waldeyer's brain was never investigated and not preserved, likely due to damage by stroke and poor anatomical fixation. Waldeyer's skull shows the common features of a male European of senile age with some notable anatomical variation including a "trigeminus bridge".

DISCUSSION

Waldeyer's donation is embedded in a tradition of research looking, if in vain, for traceable signs of intelligence or geniality in brains of well-known individuals. Reservations of anatomists to dissect other anatomists and to donate their own bodies persist until today.

Revisiting the Latin vocabulary of Terminologia Histologica: I. Nouns

Almost 20% of the Latin nouns (193/993) in Terminologia Histologica (TH), the international standard nomenclature for human histology and cytology, display linguistic problems, particularly in the areas of orthography, gender, and declension. Some anatomists have opposed efforts to restore the quality of the Latin nomenclature as pedantry, preferring to create or modify Latin words so that they resemble words in English and other modern languages. A Latin microanatomical nomenclature is vulnerable to the criticism of anachronism, so the requirement for the use of authentic Latin, including derivation of new words from Greek and Latin words rather than from modern languages, if possible, may be even greater than it is for the anatomical nomenclature. The most common problem identified here appears to have been caused by derivation of Latin nouns by addition of -us and -um second declension endings to English words. Many Latin nouns (128) in TH contain one of six morphemes that have been treated this way even though the original Greek words are either first declension masculine or third declension neuter nouns. Ironically, deriving Latin nouns directly from Greek morphemes often results in words that look more familiar to speakers of Romance and Germanic languages than those derived indirectly through modern languages (e.g., astrocyte, collagene, dendrita, lipochroma, osteoclasta and telomere instead of astrocytus, collagenum, dendritum, lipochromum, osteoclastus, and telomerus).

Responsible research in the practice of anatomy: Attributes relevant to body donors and human tissues sourced from them

Responsible Research involves setting moral examples before fellow academicians and the society as a whole. The concept of Responsible Research applies appropriately to ethical sourcing and handling of human tissues. The present study was undertaken to analyze present situation regarding implementation of attributes of Relevant Research in relation to body donors in anatomical research. A literature search of relevant, peer-reviewed, published articles was undertaken from indexed databases (Medline & PubMed, Scopus, Embase, CINAHL Plus, Web of Science and Google Scholar) for this study. The following attributes of Responsible Research were identified for possible intervention: the fact that research was conducted on human tissues from body donors and details regarding ethical handling thereof may be explicitly mentioned in method section; expression of gratitude towards body donors by authors may be included in acknowledgement section; editor's and publisher's note in support of adoption of attributes of Responsible Research may be included in published research. Adherence to best practices in terms of ethical guidelines requires anatomists to embrace a responsible approach in research from an inclusive perspective. Accordingly, practice of acknowledging the body donors may be nurtured and augmented to include the anonymised dead (human tissues from unclaimed bodies and unknown source) provided the research protocol received clearance from authorities concerned with ethical scrutiny. Moreover, adoption of the practice in review articles will enhance the boundaries of Responsible Research in anatomical science. Thus, few recommendations are proposed as epilogue for effectual implementation of the notion floated in present study.

The anatomical variability of obturator vessels: Systematic review of literature

OBJECTIVE

To systematically assess available information about all variations of obturator vessels and to present the most surgically relevant types, their prevalence and calibre in order to provide a comprehensive overview for both anatomists and clinicians.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A total of 2689 studies were found via searching the online databases. After applying exclusion criteria 44 studies were assessed. The cadaveric studies, CT angiographies, and clinical studies were included. Number of hemipelves, prevalence of each variation and calibre of identified vessels were studied. Each variation was classified as aberrant obturator artery/vein, aberrant accessory obturator artery/vein or anastomosis.

RESULTS

In included studies the average incidence of the variant obturator artery was 26% with the aberrant obturator artery being the most frequent type (with the mean calibre 2.10 mm, SD = 0.35 mm), while the overall incidence of the variant obturator vein was 55%. Presented venous structures had the mean calibre of 2.98 mm (SD = 0.56 mm).

CONCLUSIONS

According to reviewed studies, variant obturator vessels are present in a great number of patients. Due to their possible calibre larger than 3 mm they represent a structure of high clinical importance. It is important to unify the terminology and to stress out the significance to all clinicians.

(the Younger) (1577-1657)

For the first time in the history of anatomy, the important French anatomist Jean Riolan, Jr., clarifies several conditions that anatomy adepts should accomplish during their preparation in his work Anthropographia. Anatomists should be physically, mentally, culturally, and ethically ready for their work. The anatomy teacher should consider three rules: have experience in anatomical dissection, have the essential knowledge and approach to dissection, and use a suitable teaching method.

A quality improvement apprenticeship: Gross anatomy in the time of Covid-19

The study of anatomy is a team-driven field in which anatomy instruction occurs in small groups in the laboratory with one faculty member guiding students through each anatomical region. One laboratory experience may include several small group instructors in one simultaneous learning session. In comparison, the education of future gross anatomists often happens in an apprenticeship model, where the optimal learning outcomes are met through training with an experienced mentor. It was the vision of the authors to further their education through initiating an inter-institutional exchange to apprentice with innovative mentors in order to bring new ideas back to their own gross anatomy courses. The Southeastern Conference, a consortium of the Universities in the Southern region of the United States often associated with intercollegiate sports, has a host of academic initiatives in addition to the athletic emphasis. The Southeastern Conference Faculty Travel Program is one mechanism by which the organization promotes scholarly excellence. In this case, the Faculty Travel Program provided a way for authors from the University of Kentucky to visit a nearby institution, Vanderbilt University, and learn from like-minded anatomy educators, with the goal of incorporating changes in their courses geared toward quality improvement. After this implementation, positive themes emerged in the student feedback on course evaluations. However, the collaboration was interrupted by the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. This article examines the strengths of interinstitutional apprenticeship and the benefits of such practices in a time of accelerated change in anatomical instruction.

Theodor Meynert (1833-1892): Famous brain-anatomist and poet

This paper focuses on the lesser-known side of the famous neuropathologist, anatomist, and psychiatrist Theodor Meynert (1833-1892): Meynert as a poet. Meynert decided to become a doctor late in life, a decision that required him to give up on having a career as a writer. This analysis outlines that Meynert, as a scientist, was significantly shaped by his multifaceted interests and surrounding environment. It refers to previously unknown archival materials and especially letters that gives new insights into his multifactored personality. Thus, as this paper argues, his poetic affinity is of great importance to understanding his work.

Bhagwan Din Chaurasia (1937-1985): The unsung hero of Indian anatomy

In the era of unavailability of computers and internet platform for learning anatomy, Dr Bhagwan Din Chaurasia's textbook on human anatomy was like a boon for the medical students. Dr Chaurasia was the great anatomist of India who published his first textbook in 1979 and since then it is widely read all over the world by the medical students pursuing MBBS. His books are unique in presenting systemic and comprehensive texts of applied anatomy in a simple language with easily reproducible line diagrams. Dr Chaurasia was a rare combination of an excellent teacher and a distinguished research worker. He was also a member of the advisory board of many national and international journals. Although he died at a young age, but his legacy continues through his contributions in the field of anatomy.

Anatomizing the pulse: Edmund King's analogy, observation and conception of the tubular body

In an unpublished anatomical treatise written around 1670, the English anatomist and fellow of the Royal Society of London Edmund King proposed that the human body was ultimately an assemblage of tubes and contained liquids. Without literally seeing every of its constituents to be tubular, how did King come to posit a tubular body? This article tackles the question by examining King's inquiry about the pulse against his framing of the circulatory system into a universally tubular model. Asking how King registered this model despite the limited visibility of vascularity in practice, I discuss the place of analogy in his anatomical observation. I argue that analogy constituted an essential strategy for extending what King had perceived to account for the hardly perceptible nuances of the human body. I concentrate on two of his analogies, in which the artery was compared to the cord and the ureter. These two analogies revealed remarkable epistemic potency in representing and reasoning the pulse as the inherent motion of the living artery. They suggest that in seventeenth-century observation accounts, analogy was not simply a rhetoric suspicious of violating the principle of scientific empiricism; rather, they opened up ways of seeing and imagining nature.

Usage of cadavers in surgical training and research in Japan over the past decade

The “Guidelines for Cadaver Dissection in Education and Research of Clinical Medicine” drafted by the Japan Surgical Society (JSS) and the Japanese Association of Anatomists in 2012 helped dispel legal concerns over cadaver surgical training (CST) and the usage of donated human bodies for research and development (R&D) in the country. Subsequently, in the fiscal year 2018, the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare increased the funding for CST, prompting its wider implementation. This study analyzed data obtained in 2012–2021 through the reporting system of the JSS-CST Promotion Committee to map the usage of cadavers for clinical purposes, specifically education and R&D, in Japan. We found that the number of medical universities using cadavers for CST and R&D programs was just 5 in 2012, and it reached 38 for the decade. Thus, about half of Japan’s medical universities implemented such programs over the period. Meanwhile, the total number of programs was 1,173. In the clinical field, the highest number of programs were implemented in orthopedics (27%), followed by surgery (21%), and neurosurgery (12%). Based on the purpose, the most common objective of the programs (approximately 70%) was acquiring advanced surgical techniques. Further, the highest number of programs and participants were recorded in 2019 (295 programs, 6,537 participants). Thus, the guidelines helped expand cadaver usage for clinical purposes in Japan. To further promote the clinical usage of cadavers in medical and dental universities throughout Japan, sharing know-how on operating cadaver laboratories and building understanding among the general public is recommended.

Representations of the olfactory bulb and tracts in images of the medieval cell doctrine

This article presents a collection of previously overlooked, stereotyped, abstract, anatomical representations of the olfactory bulbs and tracts that were printed as part of schematic woodcuts of the medieval cell doctrine, generally in the early-sixteenth century but extending into the seventeenth century and, in at least one case, to the mid-nineteenth century. A representation of the olfactory bulbs is incorporated into many of these woodcuts, beginning with an illustration by German physician, philosopher, and theologian Magnus Hundt in 1501 in his Antropologium, which showed central projections of the two olfactory bulbs joining in the meshwork of the rete mirabile. German physician and anatomist Johann Eichmann, known as Johannes Dryander, modified Hundt's figure for his own monograph in 1537 but retained the representation of the olfactory bulbs. In 1503, German Carthusian humanist writer Gregor Reisch published an influential and highly copied woodcut in his Margarita philosophica, showing connections from the olfactory bulbs overlying the bridge of the nose (as well as from other special sense organs) to the sensus communis in the anterior cell or ventricle. In the following centuries, numerous authors derived similar figures from Reisch's original schematic illustration of the medieval cell doctrine, including Brunschwig (1512, 1525), Głogowczyk (1514), Romberch/Host (1520), Leporeus/Le Lièvre (1520, 1523), Dolce (1562), Lull/Bernardus de Lavinheta (1612), and Elliotson (1835). Similar representations were provided by Peyligk (1518) and Eck (1520). These stereotyped schematic images linked the olfactory bulbs to olfaction before the advent of more realistic images beginning in the mid-sixteenth century.

1860-1916

This article examines in contextual depth the investigations of Indigenous Australian ancestral bodily remains by four influential British Darwinian comparative anatomists active between 1860 and 1919: George Rolleston (1829-1881), William Henry Flower (1831-1899), Alexander Macalister (1844-1919), and William Turner (1832-1916). It also reviews the examination of the structural morphology of the brains of four Indigenous Australians by Macalister's protégé, Wynfrid Lawrence Henry Duckworth (1870-1956). Since the 1970s, Darwinian scientists of the last third of the long nineteenth century have been represented in connection with the efforts of Indigenous Australian communities to have the remains of their ancestors returned for burial, as having acquired and investigated their skulls and other bodily structures to prove their evolutionary inferiority, and thereby legitimate their violent dispossession and near enslavement under so-called 'protective' regimes, where they struggled to maintain their families' health and well-being, their languages and culture. Racialized perceptions of Indigenous Australians as an evolutionarily primitive human type were perniciously influential among Australian-based and metropolitan British scientists, intellectuals, politicians and government officials during the last third of the long nineteenth century. However, as this article aims to show, by contextual scrutiny of the reportage of these leading four anatomists on their investigation of the skulls and brains of the first peoples of Tasmania and mainland Australia, they had no interest in proving Indigenous inferiority. They were driven by curiosity as to what investigation of the bodily remains of Indigenous Australians might disclose about the evolutionary genealogy of humankind. Hence, we would do well to see the outcomes of their investigations as having more complex connections with racialized perceptions of Australia's first peoples beyond medico-scientific circles, and the formulation of colonialist solutions for managing their future in the aftermath of dispossession by settler colonialism.

Evaluation of Information on Body Donation Promotion at Official Websites of Turkish Anatomy Departments

Raising public awareness of body donation is crucial for countries like Turkey that have struggling donation programs. The official websites of anatomy departments may contribute to achieving this goal. Nevertheless, previous studies reported institutional or individual reluctance of departments or anatomists, respectively, due to an expectation of adverse publicity. This study aimed to investigate whether the official websites of Turkish anatomy departments provided information on body donation and analyzed the content of these websites. Websites of anatomy departments at 100 medical faculties were evaluated. Only 12 departments (12%) provided information on body donation with varying content. A thematic analysis of the information provided revealed five main themes. These were (1) legal aspects, (2) significance, (3) acceptance/rejection criteria, (4) availability, and (5) redirection. All departments (n = 12, 100%) outlined the legal aspects of body donation, seven departments (58%) highlighted the significance of body donation, seven departments (58%) provided contact information for potential donors, five departments (41%) covered acceptance/rejection criteria, and three departments (25%) provided a link to the official website of the Turkish Society of Anatomy and Clinical Anatomy. Thus, Turkish anatomy departments were reluctant to provide information on body donation, and the content of provided information varied greatly among departments. This lack of information, coordination, and participation in existing awareness activities for body donation in anatomy department websites may be contributing to the low numbers of body donations and donor registrations seen nationally.

Anatomists Assemble! Integrating superheroes into the anatomy and physiology classroom

Anatomy and physiology courses are sometimes seen as difficult, which can lead to a lack of motivation in students to learn and engage in the course material. Students may also see the material as "dry," have issues forming personal connections, or struggle to connect the content to the real world. These issues may lead to students not performing well in the course or feeling that the health field is not ideal for them. Popular culture, especially mainstream superheroes, can serve as an option for mending these gaps by being a gateway to connecting to many students' lives. Superheroes can be integrated into the classroom through relevant, creative, and unique examples that include clinical correlates, modern scientific innovations, and some real-life "supers" living among us. Real anatomy and physiology can still be taught and explained through discussing these "incredible" examples and also present an opportunity for students to be creative in generating their own anatomical and physiological explanations for various superpowers. Superheroes also help open the classroom up to being a place of acceptance, primarily through their secret identities, which cover a broad range of idols that students can look up to, whether it is their career or based on a character's race or sexual orientation. Professors can become the superhero in their classroom and help students become more engaged and interested in the material.

Are Anatomy PhDs Nearing Extinction or Adapting to Change? United States Graduate Education Trends in the Anatomical Sciences

Faculty qualified to teach in the anatomical sciences are growing scarce just as the need for trained anatomists is greater than ever. Enrollments are surging in anticipation of a large physician shortfall; meanwhile, many anatomists are reaching retirement age. Who will fill the teaching gap? This study assessed trends in doctorates awarded in Anatomy and related fields within the United States (US) since 1969 and evaluated modern graduate education in the anatomical sciences. Data were compiled from the National Science Foundation Survey of Earned Doctorates. The total number of doctorates in the anatomical sciences and number of doctorates by sex and race/ethnicity were plotted for trend analysis. The number of PhD anatomy training programs within US medical schools was also assessed. Curricula and major characteristics of all active programs were evaluated through website searches and program director interviews. While doctorates in cell biology, developmental biology, and neuroscience have grown, the number of PhDs awarded in Anatomy has declined, on average, by 3.1 graduates per year to a 50-year low of only 8 graduates in 2017. Currently, 21 active doctoral programs in anatomy operate within US medical schools and fall into three general categories: anatomy education (n = 8), classic anatomy (n = 8), and anthropology/evolutionary anatomy (n = 5). Without a concerted effort by stakeholders to address the shortage, anatomists may face extinction. Expansion of the anatomy education doctoral degree may represent a necessary evolution of the field to meet job market needs and to thwart the extinction threat.

Clay-Based Modeling in the Anatomist's Toolkit: A Systematic Review

Anatomical education has suffered from reduced teaching time and poor availability of staff and resources over the past thirty years. Clay-based modeling (CBM) is an alternative technique for teaching anatomy that can improve student knowledge and experience. This systematic review aimed to summarize and appraise the quality of the literature describing the uses, advantages, and limitations of CBM compared to alternative methods of teaching human gross anatomy to students or qualified healthcare professionals. A systematic search of Embase, MEDLINE, Scopus, and Web of Science databases was conducted, and the Medical Education Research Quality Instrument (MERSQI) was used to assess study quality. Out of the 829 studies identified, 12 papers met the inclusion criteria and were eligible for this review. The studies were of high quality, with a mean MERSQI score of 11.50/18. Clay-based modeling can be used to teach all gross anatomical regions, and 11 studies demonstrated a significant improvement in short-term knowledge gain in students who used CBM in comparison to other methods of learning anatomy. Eight studies that included subjective assessment showed that CBM is rated highly. However, some studies showed that students viewed CBM as juvenile and experienced difficulty making the models. Additionally, there is no evidence to suggest that CBM improves long-term knowledge. Clay-based modeling is an effective learning method for human gross anatomy and should be incorporated into the anatomists' toolkit. In the future, more randomized controlled studies with transparent study designs investigating the long-term impact of CBM are needed.

Hemard's Libellus: A Controversy of Translation and Plagiarism in Renaissance Dental Medicine, as Confirmed by a Newly Discovered Copy of Eustachio's de Dentibus

In 1563, the Italian anatomist Bartolomeo Eustachio published Libellus de Dentibus, the first book on dental anatomy. Subsequently, the surgeon Urbain Hemard authored Recherche de la Vraye Anathomie des Dents in 1582, the first book on dentistry in the French language. Hemard and Eustachio, two names integral in the biblio-historical development of dentistry, have been intertwined in a philological controversy ever since, with historians debating charges of plagiarism. Hemard's commentary on dental anatomy bears striking resemblance to Eustachio's, with the bulk of the text being an exact French translation. This essay will introduce a newly discovered copy of Eustachio's Libellus that bears the signature of Hemard, thus, reinforcing the plagiarism charges. However, the historiographical debate has been buttressed simply on the contents of the two books, with little attention paid to the socio-political influences that could have directed Hemard towards textual annexation. In sixteenth-century Europe, cultural animosity was percolating within political and social spheres, and seeping into the publishing industry. French translations of foreign texts were viewed as a defense against Italian cultural intrusion. This essay will argue that given the prestige of Italian anatomical knowledge, Hemard may have felt justified in annexing the work of his foreign contemporary as a defense of French national identity, and ultimately, since Eustachio was mired in obscurity in his time, he could have seized the opportunity to elevate his status as a great anatomist.

MIECZYSŁAW KONOPACKI - THE OUTSTANDING POLISH HISTOLOGIST, ANATOMIST, AND FREEMASON ACTIVIST

This article presents the life and work of Professor Mieczysław Konopacki, a Polish physician, freemason, social and political activist. Mieczysław Konopacki was born in 1880 in Wieluń, a town with almost 800 years of history. After passing his secondary school-leaving examinations in 1899, he began his studies at the University of Warsaw. Thanks to his diligence and commitment to research, in 1903, he received the degree of candidate of all-natural sciences at the Imperial Warsaw University. In the same year, he was arrested by the Russian authorities for his involvement in developing education in the Polish countryside and forced to move to Cracow, where he began his studies at the Faculty of Medicine of the Jagiellonian University. In 1907, he married and moved to Lviv with his wife, who was also an embryologist. There, the couple began working at the Histology Department. Also, there, in 1911, Mieczysław Konopacki obtained his doctor's degree in medicine. He was an extremely hard-working and broad-minded man. He was a member of many associations and international scholar organizations. He took an active part in many congresses and symposia. In independent Poland, Professor Konopacki was involved in the organization of science. He tried to compensate for the many years of neglect caused by the policy of the partitioners. In 1933 Professor Konopacki was elected Vice President of the Warsaw Branch of the Young Men's Christian Association. Complementing the social activity of Professor Konopacki was his activity in the Grand National Lodge of Poland. He died in Warsaw on September 25, 1939, fatally struck by shrapnel from a German bullet.

A Surgical View of Anatomy: Perspectives from Students and Instructors

As curricular emphasis on anatomy in undergraduate medical education continues to evolve, new approaches to anatomical education are urgently needed to prepare medical students for residency. A surgical anatomy class was designed for third- and fourth-year medical students to explore important anatomical relationships by performing realistic surgical procedures on anatomical donors. Under the guidance of both surgeons and anatomists, students in this month-long elective course explored key anatomical relationships through performing surgical approaches, with the secondary benefit of practicing basic surgical techniques. Procedures, such as left nephrectomy, first rib resection for thoracic outlet syndrome, and carotid endarterectomy, were adapted from those used clinically by multiple surgical subspecialties. This viewpoint commentary highlights perspectives from students and instructors that suggest the value of a surgical approach to anatomical education for medical students preparing for procedure-oriented residencies, with the goals of: (1) describing the elective at the authors' institution, (2) promoting similar efforts across different institutions, and (3) encouraging future qualitative and quantitative studies of similar pedagogic efforts.

Cultural practices of the Zulu ethnic group on the body and their influence on body donation

Cultural practices in the African continent have been thought to impact negatively on body donation. Thus, most African countries continue to rely on unclaimed bodies for dissection programs, or bequests from the white population. The latter situation is dominant in South African medical schools. Since South Africa is multi-cultural with nine main ethnic groups of the Black African population, it is important to seek the reasons behind lack of participation in body donation. This report represents a move in this direction with its qualitative study of the cultural practices of the Zulu ethnic group in the province of KwaZulu-Natal from the perspective of a variety of participants, with emphasis on their treatment of the human body after death. Four themes emerged from interviews: (1) Death is not the end; (2) Effect of belief in ancestors; (3) Significance of rituals and customs carried out on human tissue; and (4) Burial as the only method of body disposal. Each of these themes is discussed in relation to the likelihood of body donation being seen by Zulus as an acceptable practice. It is concluded that this is unlikely, on account of the need to preserve the linkage between the physical human body and the spirit of the deceased person, and the perceived ongoing relationship between the spirit of the dead and the living. In view of these conclusions, a number of options are canvassed about the manner in which anatomists in KwaZulu-Natal might obtain bodies for dissection. These possibilities have implications for anatomists working in comparable cultural contexts.

Analysis of Population Representation Among Willed Whole-Body Donors to Facilitate the Construction of a Body Donation Program in China: From the Perspective of Medical Students and Anatomists

The body donation program of Peking Union Medical College was established in May 1999. From May 1999 to December 2017, a total of 5,576 registrants registered and 1,459 donors donated their bodies. Demographic and medical characteristics of the donors were analyzed. The top four causes of death were neoplasms, heart diseases, respiratory diseases, and cerebrovascular diseases. Age at death among donors who died of neoplasms were significantly lower than other causes of death (all p < .05), and the interval between registration and donation among donors who died of neoplasms was significantly shorter than that among donors with other causes (all p < .001). The age of donors when they registered (p < .001) and donated (p < .001) was significantly older than that of general Beijing population. This study may provide a guide for medical colleges or research institutions to establish or enhance their own body donation programs.

"Bedside Anatomy": A Tool to Contextualize Learning and Introduce Surgical Careers

BACKGROUND

Many medical students cite an unwelcoming culture in surgery and perceive surgeons as arrogant or unfriendly. These perceptions have been reported as factors discouraging medical students from applying to surgical residency programs. This highlights an opportunity early in medical education to address these negative stereotypes and create opportunities for positive interactions with surgeons. We hypothesize that positive experiences with surgical residents and introduction to representative surgical cases early in the medical school curriculum can provide a real-world context for learning anatomy and encourage students to consider a surgical career.

METHODS

We developed and implemented a series of structured, one-hour, cadaver-based sessions cofacilitated by anatomists and surgical residents for medical students during their anatomy didactics. Sessions included common surgical cases and focused on critical thinking and problem-solving skills, while offering opportunities to review cadaver anatomy. Students completed a postcourse survey.

RESULTS

Nine sessions were implemented with involvement of eight surgical residents and 185 students; 83 students completed a postcourse survey (response rate of 45%). A majority of students rated the sessions "very helpful" in terms of highlighting the importance of anatomy in medical education (n = 52, 63%) and providing clinical context (n = 59, 71%). 54% (n = 45) indicated interest in a surgical career and 64% (n = 53) agreed that session participation had increased their interest in surgery.

CONCLUSIONS

Overall, students agreed that sessions provided clinical context for their learning and increased interest in a surgical career. Surgical faculty and residents should engage in preclinical medical education to bridge the basic science and clinical years and introduce positive surgical role models early during medical training.

Anders Retzius and the Dental Histologists of the Mid-Nineteenth Century: Their Contribution to Comparative Anatomy, Histology and Anthropology

Anatomy, comparative anatomy and embryology are fundamental to taxonomy and evolutionary biology. In the mid-nineteenth century many anatomists and zoologists made major contributions to more than one of these disciplines and a surprising number of them were also histologists. Historical accounts of discoveries and developments in anatomy, and in particular dental histology, rarely consider broader contributions and have tended to be concerned with establishing historical priority about who discovered or described what first. The period 1830 to 1840 saw new developments in light microscopy that enabled studies of histology, cellular pathology and embryology. It also saw a shift away from older ideas such as Naturphilosophie and vitalism towards a more rigorous experimental approach to scientific investigation. Many scientists with diverse research interests were working in parallel on comparative dental histology and were in many cases largely unaware of each other's work. One researcher, Anders Retzius, travelled widely across Europe, corresponded regularly with his scientific colleagues and, probably unbeknownst to himself in his own lifetime, made a lasting contribution to dental histology. Anders Retzius was a clinician, an anatomist, a comparative anatomist, a histologist and latterly an anthropologist. His life and career spanned the whole of this fast-moving period in the history of anatomy and histology.

Current status of cadaver sources in Turkey and a wake-up call for Turkish anatomists

Persisting difficulties in body procurement in Turkey led to the acquisition of donated, unclaimed, autopsied, and imported bodies regulated under current legislature. Yet, no study had investigated the extent of the on-going cadaver problem. This study was aimed to outline cadaver sources in anatomy departments and their effectiveness by means of an online survey. Additionally, official websites of each department were investigated regarding any information on body donation. Unclaimed cadavers (84.8%) were the major source for anatomy departments, followed by donated (50%) and imported cadavers (39.1%). Foundation-based medical faculties were more likely to import cadavers (P = 0.008). There was a moderate increase (r_s  = 0.567; P = 0.018) in donation registrations to our department after 2000. The departments in cities with significantly higher City-Based Gross Domestic Product measures (US$9,900 vs. US$16,772, P = 0.041), frequencies for mid- or high-school graduates (30.4% vs. 31.3%, P = 0.041), and frequencies for under- or post-graduates (13.1% vs. 15.8%, P = 0.24) had managed to use donated cadavers. Anatomy departments' major reasons for using unclaimed cadavers were education (45.9%), unclaimed cadavers being the only source (24.3%), and receiving inadequate donations (21.6%). Nine out of seventy-four departments (12.2%) provided information regarding body donation on their websites. Body procurement remains as a serious problem in Turkey and it is apparent that current legislature does not provide a sufficient cadaver inflow. Similarly, anatomy departments' effectiveness in public awareness of body donation and support in the National Body Donation Campaign seems questionable. Anat Sci Educ 11: 155-165. © 2017 American Association of Anatomists.

Maintaining the anonymity of cadavers in medical education: Historic relic or educational and ethical necessity?

Throughout the modern history of anatomical dissection by medical and other health science students, cadavers have been anonymized. This has meant that students have been provided with limited, if any, information on the identities or medical histories of those they are dissecting. While there was little way around this when the bodies were unclaimed, this need not be the case when the bodies have been donated. However, with a few exceptions, no efforts have been made to change this model. Recent attempts to move anatomy teaching in a more humanistic direction, by emphasizing the cadaver as the students' first patient and with the growth of commemoration services following the dissecting process, raise the question of whether cadavers should continue to be anonymized. In laying a basis for discussion of this matter, we outline what appear to be the virtues of anonymity, and the form that alternatives to anonymity might take. The options identified are nonidentification, low information; nonidentification, moderate information; and identification, full information. The virtues and drawbacks of each of these possibilities are assessed by analyzing their value for students, and also for donors and their families. Policy issues raised by alternatives are also considered. This article provides a basis for continued discussion and suggestions for further research in this area. Anat Sci Educ 10: 87-97. © 2016 American Association of Anatomists.

Interactive anatomical and surgical live stream lectures improve students' academic performance in applied clinical anatomy

Tuebingen's Sectio Chirurgica (TSC) is an innovative, interactive, multimedia, and transdisciplinary teaching method designed to complement dissection courses. The Tuebingen's Sectio Chirurgica (TSC) allows clinical anatomy to be taught via interactive live stream surgeries moderated by an anatomist. This method aims to provide an application-oriented approach to teaching anatomy that offers students a deeper learning experience. A cohort study was devised to determine whether students who participated in the TSC were better able to solve clinical application questions than students who did not participate. A total of 365 students participated in the dissection course during the winter term of the 2012/2013 academic year. The final examination contained 40 standard multiple-choice (S-MC) and 20 clinically-applied multiple-choice (CA-MC) items. The CA-MC items referred to clinical cases but could be answered solely using anatomical knowledge. Students who regularly participated in the TSC answered the CA-MC questions significantly better than the control group (75% and 65%, respectively; P < 0.05, Mann-Whitney U test). The groups exhibited no differences on the S-MC questions (85% and 82.5%, respectively; P > 0.05). The CA-MC questions had a slightly higher level of difficulty than the S-MC questions (0.725 and 0.801, respectively; P = 0.083). The discriminatory power of the items was comparable (S-MC median Pearson correlations: 0.321; CA-MC: 0.283). The TSC successfully teaches the clinical application of anatomical knowledge. Students who attended the TSC in addition to the dissection course were able to answer CA-MC questions significantly better than students who did not attend the TSC. Thus, attending the TSC in addition to the dissection course supported students' clinical learning goals. Anat Sci Educ 10: 46-52. © 2016 American Association of Anatomists.

The Uppsala anatomist Ivar Sandström and the parathyroid gland

The discovery of the parathyroid gland by the Uppsala anatomist Ivar Sandström (Figure 1) is often called the last anatomical discovery. That remarkable discovery was made in 1877 at the Anatomical Department in Uppsala. At that time Sandström was a young medical student, who had worked as an assistant at the department since 1873. His discovery was published in Upsala Läkareförenings Förhandlingar, in 1880 (1). His publication was in Swedish, and the paper was entitled ‘On a New Gland in Man and Several Animals’. The article comprised 30 pages, and in the introduction Sandström writes: Almost three years ago I found on the thyroid gland of a dog a small organ, hardly as big as a hemp seed, which was enclosed in the same connective tissue as the thyroid, but could be distinguished therefrom by the light colour

Can anatomists teach living anatomy using ultrasound as a teaching tool?

The utilization of bedside ultrasound by an increasing number of medical specialties has created the need for more ultrasound exposure and teaching in medical school. Although there is a widespread support for more vertical integration of ultrasound teaching throughout the undergraduate curriculum, little is known about whether the quality of ultrasound teaching differs if performed by anatomists or clinicians. The purpose of this study is to compare medical students' evaluation of ultrasound anatomy teaching by clinicians and anatomists. Hands-on interactive ultrasound sessions were scheduled as part of the gross anatomy course following principles of adult learning and instructional design. Seven teachers (three anatomists and four clinicians) taught in each session. Before each session, anatomists were trained in ultrasound by clinicians. Students were divided into groups, rotated teachers between sessions, and completed evaluations. Results indicated students perceived the two groups as comparable for all factors except for knowledge organization and the helpfulness of ultrasound for understanding anatomy (P < 0.001). However, results from unpaired samples t-tests demonstrated a nonstatistically significant difference between the groups within each session for both questions. Moreover, students' test performance for both groups was similar. This study demonstrated that anatomists can teach living anatomy using ultrasound with minimal training as well as clinicians, and encourage the teaching of living anatomy by anatomists in human anatomy courses using ultrasound. Repeating this study at a multicenter level is currently being considered to further validate our conclusion.

Orthopedic resident anatomy review course: a collaboration between anatomists and orthopedic surgeons

A challenge for new residents and senior residents preparing for board examinations is refreshing their knowledge of basic science disciplines, such as human gross anatomy. The Department of Orthopaedics at the University of Utah School of Medicine has for many years held an annual Orthopedic Resident Anatomy Review Course during the summer months for all of its residents. The primary purpose of the course is to renew competencies in basic science disciplines so that incoming residents more quickly reach a level of functional proficiency and to afford senior residents a platform to teach their junior colleagues. Before 2005, this course was conducted with minimal participation from anyone outside of the Department of Orthopaedics. Many of the residents voiced concerns that the educational benefits were not proportionate to the time invested. To improve the teaching of orthopedic-related anatomy, an educational collaboration between the Departments of Neurobiology and Anatomy and Orthopaedics was established in 2004 and continues to the present time. The major objectives of refining the course pedagogy, developing a Course Manual and Dissection Guide, and evaluating the results by administering a course survey questionnaire are described in this article. Implementation of all facets of the revised course has resulted in better participation by orthopedic faculty and more favorable reviews by the participating residents. Based on current levels of interest and positive comments from course participants, the Anatomy and Orthopedic faculty course directors plan to continue to develop course materials and pedagogy.

[Final report of the working group for the future planning of the Japanese Association of Anatomists]

The working group for the future planning of the Japanese Association of Anatomists (JAA) has been working to address the issues that were consulted from the president of JAA since October 2009. After making the interim report in March 2010, a public hearing for general members of the JAA was held and a final report was submitted to the President in January 2011. The report contains the analysis of the current situation, the directions in which we should proceed, and recommendations of concrete actions that JAA should take for each issue. The issues discussed were as follows: 1. Future prospects of anatomy and morphological sciences. How can we maintain the specialties of morphological and anatomical sciences in the rapidly advancing field of life sciences and develop collaborations with other fields? 2. Improvement of the JAA academic meetings. How can we increase JAA members and young participants in the academic meetings of the JAA? 3. Fostering the next generation of young researchers. How can we increase young researchers graduated from the schools of Medicine or Dentistry? 4. Future prospects of education of gross anatomy. Prospects of education in gross anatomy and the body donation registration system in relation with some new cadaver-related movements.

[THE ANATOMISTS AND THE RESURRECTIONISTS IN GREAT BRITAIN. II. MURDER FOR ANATOMY]

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