SynDaver®: as a tool for anatomical teaching?

Abstract

From my point of view, some questions concerning the SynDaver® synthetic cadaver deserve to be analyzed: 1. is the utility of synthetic cadavers different from the cheaper plastic models? 2. could this new resource replace the use of the human cadaver? 3. is it possible to dissect a synthetic cadaver? Regarding the first point, although the SynDaver® synthetic cadaver is offered as a highfidelity model, there is no proof of this material’s effectiveness in gross anatomy teaching, considering its expensive cost. The letter’s authors stated that students perform better on final exams when they dissect these types of material compared to 3D models and anatomical drawings, but there are no systematic studies about its effectiveness or comparison with other teaching resources. Supporting the synthetic cadaver effectiveness, the authors reference the work of Richardson et al. (2020), who explore this material’s utility and student perception in an undergraduate human anatomy course. Using a systematic study, the authors demonstrated its utility by improving student grades by comparing synthetic cadavers and models with only models, but not with other teaching resources. Another referenced author exposes the tool as a new technologic resource to the study of anatomy with clinical orientation, considering that it is adequate to study larger anatomical structures, different organs, and topography, but they omit the proof of their efficacy (Hecht and Larrazabal, 2018).