A new student-led dissection approach to the glenohumeral joint

Abstract

Modern day anatomy educators face many educational challenges associated with changes in curriculum, institutional reorganization and reduced teaching hours-all alongside criticism that medical students' anatomical knowledge at graduation is insufficient. At the University of Nottingham in the United Kingdom, a traditional approach to full body cadaveric dissection is carried out in the undergraduate medical curriculum, using dissection manuals based on long- published dissector guides. First-year medical students dissect the shoulder region in a superficial manner allowing good visualization of musculature and surrounding neurovascular structures, although observation of the internal joint is significantly limited. This study reports a student-led adaption to a novel dissection approach of the glenohumeral joint, which involves splitting the humeral head to expose the internal joint capsule in exceptional detail. The prosection generated was incorporated into an on-line teaching package for first-year medical students. Students' knowledge of the region was assessed before and after accessing the on-line teaching material, and results highlighted a significant improvement in anatomical knowledge after completion of the package (P = 0.013). First-year medical students who view the novel dissection also out-performed second-year medical students who had experienced traditional teaching of this region (P = 0.002). This study has demonstrated that a novel dissection of the glenohumeral joint can provide educational benefit by increasing anatomical knowledge of the region. Furthermore, student-led innovations may act as a powerful means of achieving much-needed reform in the field of musculoskeletal anatomy education.