Student injuries in the dissecting room

Cadaver dissection is the first opportunity for many students to practice handling human tissue and is their first exposure to the occupational hazards involved with this task. Few studies examine dissection room injuries to ascertain the dangers associated with dissecting. We performed a retrospective cohort analysis of dissection room injuries from four student cohorts over an eleven-year period (2001-2011), including second-year medical students, third-year medical students, second-year dental students, and third-year science students. Injury data included activity causing injury, object responsible, and injury site. A total of 163 injuries during 70,039 hours of dissection were recorded, with 66 in third-year medical students, 42 in second-year medical students, 36 in third-year science students, and 16 in second-year dental students. The overall rate was 2.87 injuries per 1,000 dissection hours, with second-year medical students most frequently injured (5.5 injuries per 1,000 hours); third-year medical students were least frequently injured (1.3 injuries per 1,000 hours). A significant difference in injury rates between student groups indicated a higher than expected injury rate to second-year medical students and lower than expected rates to third-year medical students. Injury rates increased for most groups between 2001-2006 and 2007-2011 periods. Most injuries (79%) were from scalpel cuts to the finger or thumb. This study provides injury rates for dissection room injuries to students, indicating differences in injury frequency between cohorts and an increase in injury rate over time. As scalpel cuts were the most likely injury mechanism, targeting scalpel handling with preventative strategies may reduce future injury risk.