Formation and assessment of a novel surgical video atlas for thyroidectomy

Within surgery, interactive media have previously been used to educate medical students and residents. Here, we develop and assess the efficacy of a novel surgical video atlas in teaching surgically relevant head and neck anatomy to medical students. A total thyroidectomy was recorded intraoperatively and subsequently narrated to develop a video atlas. Medical students were recruited and randomly assigned to one of the two interventions. One group was assigned to the video atlas, while the other was supplied with a traditional textbook atlas. Both groups underwent pre- and post- tests to evaluate anatomical knowledge and satisfaction. Thirty-seven students completed the study, with 18 students in the experimental group and 19 students as control. In the video atlas arm, mean pre and post-test scores were 57.2% and 84.5%, respectively. In the traditional textbook arm, the mean pre- and post-test scores were 55.3% and 76.51%, respectively. Students with the video atlas had a mean post-test score 8.07% points higher than those without (p = .035). Overall, students were significantly more satisfied with the surgical video atlas than with the standard traditional textbook. A surgical video atlas was shown to more effectively teach head and neck anatomy to medical students compared to standard textbook atlases.