Introduction to cadavers - A student’s perspective

Background: Dissection of the dead human body has been central to medical education since Renaissance. First year medical students normally experience a variety of emotional reactions and mixed feelings, when they encounter human cadavers for the first time. Aim: In order to assess the impact of anxiety and physical symptoms from the experience of dissection room, a questionnaire was prepared which provide an insight into the difference in attitudes and dissection hall experience of the male and female medical students. Material and methods: Total 181 students were given a questionnaire within 3-4 days of the start of dissection in the dissection hall. The students were asked to answer in either ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ option. Observation: No statistical significant difference was found between the responses of male and female students except regarding the previous exposure to dead body, which was more in males and statistically significant (p<0.05). Difficulty in consuming food and shivering of hands were more common in males in comparison to females. Conclusion: A better teacher ? student interaction, pre-education sessions will help in improving the attitudes of students towards cadaveric dissection, which will in turn offer a stable mental status for medicos to handle higher levels of stress in their clinical career, thereby reducing the drop-out rates.