As many of you can tell, I am usually very excited or entertained by the cadaver lab for a variety of reasons. This week I was not nearly as enthused or excited. Usually, when I am not excited about learning a particular body system I have a very hard time retaining or even studying the information. I have always had an issue with learning the reproductive system or.... anything in the perineal cavity for that exact reason. I hate to say this, but I really do not have an interest in this field of medicine for some reason. I guess everyone has their body systems that they love and highly (or relatively) dislike. That being said, this lab was interesting in an unusual way.
The lab group before us seemed to have prosected most of the female cadaver's reproductive system making it removable from the body. Not only did this seem extremely strange to me but it was not like any of the other dissections we have done. When we cut out other organs and structures we simply snipped the vessels leading into them or trimmed the fascia around them. This was not the case with the organs of the perineum. Now, the uterus leads into the vaginal canal and out of the perineum surrounded by labia and skin. The lab group before us decided that they would keep all of this together to make it easier to understand the anatomy; however, it made the entire area removable (including the labia and skin) from the body. Nevertheless, this was a great idea because now we were able to trace the path from the ovary down and out of the perineum.
Another anatomical structure in the posterior part of the true pelvis is... you guessed it... the rectum and anus. Next week in physical assessment we will be required to practice a prostate exam on a real person simulated as a patient in the PSCCC. Not only am I extremely nervous for practicing in front of a real person (patient), but we also have to perform the rectal prostate exam! So, I guess practicing on a cadaver is a good idea before we have to try this on a real person. Our instructor helped dissect out the muscles such as the gluteus maximus, medius, and minimus as well as the anal sphincter and all its counterparts.
I guess the overall take home message from this "exciting" blog and experience is that medicine is not always pretty and sometimes, you just need to get down and dirty to learn new things and examine your patients!
The lab group before us seemed to have prosected most of the female cadaver's reproductive system making it removable from the body. Not only did this seem extremely strange to me but it was not like any of the other dissections we have done. When we cut out other organs and structures we simply snipped the vessels leading into them or trimmed the fascia around them. This was not the case with the organs of the perineum. Now, the uterus leads into the vaginal canal and out of the perineum surrounded by labia and skin. The lab group before us decided that they would keep all of this together to make it easier to understand the anatomy; however, it made the entire area removable (including the labia and skin) from the body. Nevertheless, this was a great idea because now we were able to trace the path from the ovary down and out of the perineum.
Another anatomical structure in the posterior part of the true pelvis is... you guessed it... the rectum and anus. Next week in physical assessment we will be required to practice a prostate exam on a real person simulated as a patient in the PSCCC. Not only am I extremely nervous for practicing in front of a real person (patient), but we also have to perform the rectal prostate exam! So, I guess practicing on a cadaver is a good idea before we have to try this on a real person. Our instructor helped dissect out the muscles such as the gluteus maximus, medius, and minimus as well as the anal sphincter and all its counterparts.
I guess the overall take home message from this "exciting" blog and experience is that medicine is not always pretty and sometimes, you just need to get down and dirty to learn new things and examine your patients!