Uruj Zehra, Zubia Athar, Asma Hafeez, Farwa Rizvi.
Is the use of PowerPoint Presentations a Better Tool of Understanding Gross Anatomy than Cadaveric Dissection?.
Ann Pak Inst Med Sci Jan ;8(1):6-10.

Objective: To study the performance of 1st year medical students in structured exams of gross anatomy after exposure to demonstration with cadaveric dissection in comparison to demonstration with powerpoint presentations (with images and animation). Place & Duration: Anatomy Department, Wah Medical College, From Jan to Feb 2010. Study Design: Randomized Control Trial (The cadaveric dissection methodology and the powerpoint presentations were themselves an intervention for two groups) Materials and Methods: 64 first year medical students were divided equally in two groups by random sampling. Group I was exposed to demonstration with dissection and group II was taught with PowerPoint aided demonstrations only. A questionnaire with four close ended questions each with four options was administered to students wherein they were asked to compare the benefits of both teaching methodologies. After exams, independent and paired sample t tests were used to compare the means of obtained marks across and within groups respectively. Passing status of both groups was compared by Chi. 2 Results: Means of obtained marks (viva voce, written and collective) by two groups were compared by independent sample “t” test which proved insignificant (P=0.618, 0.306 and 0.698 respectively). A within group comparison (paired sample t test) of written and viva voce means yielded insignificant statistical difference in group I (P=0.80), while means of viva marks of group II was significantly less than that of written (P=0.001). Chi2 comparison of passing status between groups revealed insignificant results (P=0.86). In questionnaire 46 (74.2%) students showed inclination towards a hybrid methodology for learning of gross anatomy encompassing dissection and powerpoint presentations. Conclusion: In a Pakistani medical college dissection helps the students in achieving same level of skills needed for written and oral expression, whereas students not exposed to dissection face a difficulty in developing indepth understanding necessary for good oral expression.

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