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Cadaver dissection engages medical students in active learning, critical thinking, and problem solving. During dissection, students at SKMC are encouraged to document pathologic findings in their cadavers and discuss the findings with their peers. Here, we describe two cases that provided opportunities for integrating anatomy with pathology and clinical medicine. The first case was a benign ovarian neoplasm. This large pelvic mass displaced the urinary bladder and uterus, and compressed the ureters and rectum. Students discussed clinical complications of this pelvic mass and reviewed pathologic findings that differentiate benign from malignant neoplasms. The second case was breast cancer with widespread metastases and pulmonary atelectasis. Students examined the histopathology of breast cancer and discussed mechanisms of tumor metastasis. Pathologic findings and evidence of past surgical procedures are frequently encountered during cadaver dissection. These findings provide a valuable opportunity for integrating the preclinical basic sciences and stimulating the development of critical thinking skills.

Untimed examinations are popular with students because there is a perception that first impressions may be incorrect, and that difficult questions require more time for reflection. In this report, we tested the hypothesis that timed anatomy practical examinations are inherently more difficult than untimed examinations. Students in the Doctor of Physical Therapy program at Thomas Jefferson University were assessed on their understanding of anatomic relationships using multiple-choice questions. For the class of 2012 (n = 46), students were allowed to circulate freely among 40 testing stations during the 40-minute testing session. For the class of 2013 (n = 46), students were required to move sequentially through the 40 testing stations (one minute per item). Students in both years were given three practical examinations covering the back/upper limb, lower limb, and trunk. An identical set of questions was used for both groups of students (untimed and timed examinations). Our results indicate that there is no significant difference between student performance on untimed and timed examinations (final percent scores of 87.3 and 88.9, respectively). This result also held true for students in the top and bottom 20th percentiles of the class. Moreover, time limits did not lead to errors on even the most difficult, higher-order questions (i.e., items with P-values < 0.70). Thus, limiting time at testing stations during an anatomy practical examination does not adversely affect student performance.