Perception of Surgical Faculty on the Utility of Modified Thiel Embalmed Cadavers

Introduction: Surgical skills training on low and high fidelity simulators have been in practice for over a decade, but due to the high cost of virtual reality simulators it is beyond the reach of institutions and trainees. Among the simulators, high fidelity simulators such as a suitably prepared human anatomical specimen would give a real feel as if doing the procedure in the living. Hence, having soft, supple cadaver with organoleptic properties is an ideal situation for training by simulation and research. To facilitate the surgical skill training and research, chemical embalming was adopted with modifications of the Thiel method, for cadaver preservation. Aim: The aim of this study was to study the perception of the surgical faculty’s experience on the utility of modified Thiel embalmed cadavers for surgical procedures. Materials and Methods: In this cross-sectional study, a feedback was taken from practicing surgeons of broad and sub specialties such as general surgery, orthopedic surgery, neurosurgery, plastic surgery, pediatric surgery, ophthalmology, ENT, OBG, Transplant surgery (n=54). A 5 point Likert scale questionnaire was used with criteria of measurements like skin color, consistency, odour, differentiation of the layers, approach to the area, joint mobility and suitability for the procedure. Results: The scores ranged from 3.9 to 4.46/5. The participants expressed satisfaction on the cadaver quality on their utility for performance of surgical procedures. They expressed that, such embalmed cadavers would be excellent for learning purpose, surgical skills training in orthopedic procedures like arthroscopy. They felt the joint mobility was good, the consistency was soft and differentiation of layers was good. Some felt the tissues were fragile and would easily give away losing their strength. Conclusion: Thiel embalmed cadavers retain their organoleptic properties and hence facilitate surgical skills training. The thiel embalmed cadavers have been used for many procedures like thyroidectomy, mastectomy, laparoscopy, flaps, nasal endoscopy and have been found suitable for surgical skill training. The only hindrance in the usage of the modified thiel embalmed cadavers is brain related procedures as the brain is not effectively embalmed and the high cost of chemicals involved in embalming.