PREPARATION OF A TEMPORAL BONE EXHIBIT

Temporal bone dissection forms an important aspect in the training of an otolaryngologist. The more dissection one does the more confident o ne is in the operating room. The aim of this paper is to advise in the preparation of temporal bones for the purpose of display, exhibition or competition. The practical aspects of dissection are deliberately a voided concentrating on the selection of bones pre- and post-dissectio n, preparation of the bones, fixing and display of vessels and nerves and also mounting and lighting for exhibition purposes. The temporal b one laboratory should be well equipped with a microscope, a power dril l with a range of cutting and polishing burrs, a range of fine instrum ents, a suction machine with different sizes of suction tips, water so urce, a place to store the bones etc., thus creating an ideal environm ent for temporal bone dissection.