TEACHING 3-DIMENSIONAL SURGICAL CONCEPTS OF INGUINAL-HERNIA IN A TIMEEFFECTIVE MANNER USING A 2-DIMENSIONAL PAPER CUT

BACKGROUND: Because inguinal hernia repair is difficult for third-year students to comprehend, a 2-dimensional paper-cut was developed to te ach the concepts of inguinal hernia in a time-effective manner before students' observation of herniorrhaphy in the operating room. METHODS: Using Adobe Illustrator 5.5 for MacIntosh, a 2-dimensional inexpensiv ely printed paper-cut was created to allow students to perform their o wn simulated hernia repair before observing surgery. The exercise was performed using a no. 15 scalpel or an iris scissors and was evaluated by comparing 10-question pre-tests and post-tests. RESULTS: Seventy-f ive students performed the exercise, most completing if within 15 minu tes. The mean pre-test scare was 7.4/10 and the mean post-test score w as 9.1/10. Students performing the paper-cut reported better understan ding when observing actual herniorrhaphy. CONCLUSIONS: A 2-dimensional paper-cut (''surgical origami'') may be a time-effective method to pr epare students for the observation of hernia repair. (C) 1997 by Excer pta Medica, Inc.