The Clinical Relevance of Teaching the Medial line Theme of the Lower Limb to Future Healthcare Professionals

Objective This project investigated the current common overview approaches to lower limb anatomy teaching and suggests an alternative technique. Introduction. The overview of the lower limb is often described as thigh, leg and foot regions, and subdivided into anterior, posterior, medial and lateral compartments. This method guarantees all structures of the lower limb are taught. Virtually all healthcare institutions have had to distill anatomy into accelerated courses. Methods Literature search was conducted regarding teaching techniques of the lower limb and morphology of 60 dissected embalmed cadavers was observed to assess patterns which correlate with common clinical conditions and techniques. Results Literature review revealed no specific teaching techniques. However, observations commonly revealed compartment and/or systems layout. Dissections revealed an overwhelming number of clinically important structures along the medial line of the lower limb. Reinforcement or stability structures, venous access, arterial supply, and nerves were emphasized greater along the medial line versus the lateral line. Discussion Anatomy courses have resulted in less student‐instructor contact time. Specific techniques would aid the efficiency of learning. This project demonstrates that emphasizing lower limb structures along the medial line would be a useful technique teaching future clinicians.