Vascular Repair for Prolongation of Life Span of Cadaveric Teaching Specimens

Cadaveric teaching specimens play a critical role in anatomy education at numerous levels (from undergraduate to doctoral studies, residents, fellows, professors, or visiting scholars/researchers). Due to exposure during teaching and other activities, it is not uncommon for cadaveric structures to sustain damage or normal wear and tear. Damaged or missing structures pose a problem to effective and accurate teaching of anatomy, and ultimately have negative downstream impact on the students’ general anatomic and clinical knowledge base. Additionally, excessive damage to cadavers is one of the leading reasons to retire a specimen from the teaching floor, reducing the number of cadavers available for anatomical study. At Michigan State University (MSU), the Human gross anatomy lab is heavily used for teaching purposes. The cadaveric specimens and body parts are all based on prosected models. Due to this heavy usage it is not uncommon to encounter damaged or missing structures (neurovasculature, muscles, tendons, ligaments, etc) in these specimens. All cadavers prosected at MSU are donors acquired through the university’s Willed Body Program. The generous gift of one’s body to anatomical education is invaluable. Therefore, out of moral obligation and respect to those who have made this gift, the maintenance and prolongation of the teaching lifespan of each donor or body part must be a priority. Aim Development of a protocol for anatomically accurate repair of damaged or missing structures of cadaveric specimens, with particular focus on vasculature. Methods All torn or cut arteries or veins were repaired using simple surgical techniques. Partially or totally severed vessels were apposed using either 3‐0 or 4‐0 silk sutures and appropriate suture pattern. Grafts of vessels harvested from other areas on the same donor were used to bridge truncated vessels. Similarly, fascia or membranous tissues were harvested and used to mask the repair sites, to prevent further damage and maintain normal anatomic appearances. For small vessels, glue was sufficient to help anastomoses cut ends or close lacerations. Results Anatomically accurate vascular repairs were completed on over 20 teaching specimens. Vessels repaired consisted of veins, arteries, lymphatics, and bile ducts. Through these repairs, we were able to restore damaged vascular structures to their appropriate forms and locations. The net outcome is the prolongation of the educational life of each cadaver or body part. Discussion and Conclusion Our protocol enabled us to accurately repair vascular tissues on multiple donors. Hence, with the establishment of this cadaveric vascular repair protocol we will prolong the teaching life for many donors and body parts in labs across all MSU campuses. Additionally, with this protocol in place, we hope to increase and sustain uniform maintenance of donors, ensuring accuracy and availability of human anatomic specimens for all levels of educational activities.