Do the Dead Enlighten the Living in Understanding Anatomy?

Background: Cadaveric dissection is a traditional method to acquire the anatomical knowledge.Even though the advancement of multimedia and prosected specimens are changing the attitude of the students towards the replacement of dissection.Purpose of the study: The aim of the study was to assess the attitude of students toward dissection, identifying the factors preventing them from learning and to obtain the suggestions for the improvement of learning in the dissection hall.Materials and methods: It was a questionnaire based study which involved 140 students of first year undergraduates conducted at Sri Manakula Vinayagar Medical College and Hospital, Pondicherry.Results: The pre and posttest questionnaires were completed by 140 students.The difference between pre and post test responses regarding the factors distracting the students from learning anatomy in the dissection hall was not statistically significant.Majority of the students opined that hands-on dissection is an important tool to learn gross anatomy even though the results were statistically insignificant.Conclusion: However different methods of learning anatomy have evolved, the most effective way to understand gross anatomy is cadaveric teaching.