Visual Human MM7202, post-post DBL

Studies in History and Philosophy of Science Part C: Studies in History and Philosophy of Biological and Biomedical Sciences, 2000

2016

International Journal of Cadaveric Studies and Anatomical Variations, 2024

On September 16, 2024, NBC National news reported on the usage of unclaimed bodies by the University of North Texas Health Science (UNTHSC) Center for Anatomical Sciences in Fort Worth, Texas.

Contexts, 2007

Bodies...The Exhibition "Bodies...The Exhibition" is the quintessential blockbuster museum show: a multicity traveling operation (with long runs in Atlanta, London, New York, Tampa, and at the Tropicana in Las Vegas), organized by Premier Exhibitions, Inc., with a hefty advertising budget, and even a rival show entitled "Body Worlds." According to ads, "real human bodies" are "preserved through an innovative process and then respectfully presented." By injecting polymers into individual parts, scientists have found a way to distinguish body parts clearly from each other. The technology could make dissection in medical and dental schools obsolete. Meanwhile, it's rocking the science museum world. I went to the show in both New York and Atlanta. "Bodies...The Exhibition" uses dissected human specimens to provide you with a visual textbook of your own body," the introductory text states. Enormous letters on one wall in the first room proclaim, "Bodies Never Lie." (I don't know about yours, but mine lies constantly.) I enter ready to be annoyed and amused at the reduction of humanity to complicated body parts. I am not disappointed. It is something of an upscale freak show: lurid science hawking a look

National Journal of Clinical Anatomy

Background and Aim Medical institutes around the world are facing scarcity of cadavers for anatomy dissection and teaching purpose. The academic value of "hands-on experience" on human bodies remains the mainstay of medical education, especially in the foster years of the young student. Efforts are needed to improve the availability of human bodies for dissection. This can be achieved by encouraging the masses to donate their bodies for the same. Material and Methods The authors conceived a full-fledged body donation awareness campaign starting from 2013, which is successfully continuing till date. The program included memorial services and honor ceremonies for the family members of the pledgers/donors. Considerate support was provided by many nongovernmental organizations as well as the administration of the institute in discussion. Observations The efforts made by the department emerged as an extremely improved scenario in terms of availability of cadavers for anatomy teaching and interdepartmental activities. Till date, 1,106 people have pledged for donating their bodies to the institute and 85 actual donations occurred till 31 July 2019. The continuous efforts of all the stakeholders have significantly improved the cadaver availability in the department where the ratio of one human body to 10 students is being practiced. Conclusions Further work is still needed to encourage more people toward this altruistic act. Further deliberations with religious and political leaders are underway to enhance the penetration of this message amongst the masses. Extensive publicity is being planned for the same, and the authors are hopeful of further promising results toward this cause.

Journal of Health and Allied Sciences NU, 2015

Anatomy is one of the basic and very important subject studied by medical students at the beginning of their medical career. Best method for learning anatomy is by dissection of human cadavers and this forms an indispensable part of training health care professionals. Since the numbers of medical institutions are increasing, there is an increased demand of cadavers for anatomic dissection. Body donation is an act of donating one's body after death for medical research and education. In this article an attempt has been made to collect literature related to body donation, its importance and the ethical issues related to body donation.

Dissection of human cadavers is compulsory for medical education which provides an emotional as well as intellectual approach to medical education. Now-a-days, with the advancement of new techniques, most of the medical professionals practice these techniques on cadavers to enhance their skills and learn them. New concept of " A Cadaveric Lab/ Operation Theater " emerged in medical education. In India, there are few medical institutions which are providing the facility of Cadaveric Lab/ Operation Theater. Hence there should be adequate inflow of cadavers for health sciences courses and research activity. The Anatomy Act provides for supply of unclaimed bodies to the hospital and teaching institutions for the purpose of dissection and research work. Unclaimed bodies and few donated bodies are the only sources for cadavers in medical institutions. So there is shortage of cadavers. To full fill the requirement of cadavers, it is necessary to motivate the people for body donat...

Clinical Anatomy, 2013

Historically, in the healthcare profession, cadaveric tissue has been predominantly used for teaching the architecture of the human body. It is respectful practice in scientific writing to acknowledge colleagues who have helped to collect/analyze data and prepare manuscripts; however, it appears that we have omitted to thank those that have donated themselves for any of these projects to occur. The objective of this study was to investigate the formal acknowledgment thanking those who have given the amazing gift of themselves to science. A literature search was conducted on printed and electronic anatomical and clinical journals. Anatomical and clinical conferences were attended between 2008 and 2012; posters utilizing cadaveric tissue were examined for acknowledgment. University/private institutions were contacted to ascertain if memorial services were held. Literature revealed only one journal that required acknowledgment when donor-cadaver's (DC's) were used. Poster examination revealed very few acknowledgments of DC tissue at clinical conferences. While all university programs (n 5 20) held memorial services, only 6 of 20 private procurement organizations had any such event. Our surgical anatomist forefathers faced awkward conditions because cadaveric tissue was not readily available. Contemporarily, anatomists and researchers have ready access to DC's. Socially, these donations are recognized as unparalleled educational tools and gifts, yet often they are not given the appropriate recognition and are overlooked in the publishing and scientific research arena.

Major national and international critiques of the medical curriculum in the 1980s noted the following significant flaws: (1) over-reliance on learning by rote memory, (2) insufficient exercise in analysis and synthesis/conceptualization, and (3) failure to connect the basic and clinical aspects of training. It was argued that the invention of computers and related imaging techniques called to question the traditional instruction based on the faculty-centered didactic lecture. In the ensuing reform, which adopted case-based, small group, problem-based learning, time allotted to anatomical instruction was severely truncated. Many programs replaced dissection with prosections and computerbased learning. We argue that cadaver dissection is still necessary for (1) establishing the primacy of the patient, (2) apprehension of the multidimensional body, (3) touch-mediated perception of the cadaver/patient, (4) anatomical variability, (5) learning the basic language of medicine, (6) competence in diagnostic imaging, (7) cadaver/patientcentered computer-assisted learning, (8) peer group learning, (9) training for the medical specialties. Cadaver-based anatomical education is a prerequisite of optimal training for the use of biomedical informatics. When connected to dissection, medical informatics can expedite and enhance preparation for a patient-based medical profession. Actual dissection is equally necessary for acquisition of scientific skills and for a communicative, moral, ethical, and humanistic approach to patient care. Anat Rec (New Anat) 269:20 -32, 2002.

American Journal of Bioethics, 2007

There has been little discussion on the role and authority of such "ethics reviews," and the responsibilities of ethics and other experts who participate in them. In the meantime von Hagens declares that: "All IFP documents relating to donated bodies have been scrutinized and approved by two ethics committees formed by the California Science Center in Los Angeles and the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, where BODY WORLDS exhibitions took place in 2005" (BODY WORLDS 2006, 2). In this way, the California Science Center ethics review became an approval authority, and a "bioethics precedent" for other North American science centers that assembled their own advisory committees in preparation for the exhibition. Instead of carrying out their own assessment of provenance and due process, many science centers only reviewed the work done for the Los Angeles exhibit. Some committee members reported that they did not feel they needed to do any more verification because they trusted the work their colleagues did for the Los Angeles exhibit. They thought that it was not necessary to "reinvent the wheel" because of their colleagues' good reputation and because the lack of funding for such a process would have prevented it. This approach prevailed in spite of a key recommendation made by the California Science Center Advisory Committee that for future plastination exhibits: ". .. a special review has to verify that bodies and organs have been donated with full and informed consent of the donors. To exhibit human bodies or organs without free and informed consent is not acceptable" (BODY WORLDS 2005, 6). Without a concern for responsibility and provenance there can be no meaningful assessment of the ethics of the educational and exhibitionary use of cadavers. It is the emphasis on donor consent, so prominently displayed in the exhibits without being grounded in conclusive and independent verification that violates respect for dignity. Moving forward we should pay greater attention to responsibility and provenance, and encourage a candid dialogue with the viewing public and the ethics community. Burns (2007) invokes both Kantian definitions and more modern conceptions of dignity, positing that the dignity of BODY WORLDS subjects is violated because they are