Pittsburgh, February 10, 2017 -- The Department of Neurological Surgery in conjunction with the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, recently completed its first annual pre-clinical elective course for medical students. The course, led by Ray Sekula, MD, and Michael McDowell, MD—in conjunction with University of Pittsburgh Neurosurgery Interest Group leaders Jani Ronak and Alexandra Sansosti—provided medical students with the opportunity to learn more about the field through a variety of lectures and hands on activities.
Students were given the opportunity to simulate treatment plans for tumors using the Gamma Knife, were exposed to the basics of endoport and endoscopic surgery, and had the opportunity to perform minor neurosurgical procedures such as external ventricular drains and lumbar punctures on cadaveric specimens.
Additional teaching support was provided by L. Dade Lunsford, MD; Johnathan Engh, MD; Nduka Amankulor, MD; Christopher Newman, MD; Nitin Agarwal, MD; Zell Zhang MD; and Kamil Nowicki, MD.
The course ran from January 9 through February 20 and was held in the Gamma Knife Conference room, the skull base lab, and the medical school's anatomy lab.