Anatomy Inside Head, Neck, and Spine Dissection Course

This unique dissection course for the head, neck, thorax and spine will involve the use of formalin fixed cadavers, provided by the department of anatomy of the University of Amsterdam. The day is divided into blocks that consist of a short presentation about the anatomy of the region, followed by dissection.

Karl Jacobs will work on formalin fixed human cadaveric head, cut in the midline (known as a sagittal section), neck, thorax and spine. At each step an anatomist will be guiding you and highlighting important learning points, related to the subject that is being covered.

Ample time will be provided for questions and discussion. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity to explore human anatomy in a truly immersive way; we will do all we can to support you and make this an unforgettable and unique educational experience.

Your course instructor is Karl Jacobs. Karl Jacobs is an anatomists and will teach you about the anatomy and guide you through the dissections.

In summary, this course will allow you to:

• Explore the complexity of the different structures working together in the head, neck, thorax and spine
• Expand your perception of the three-dimensional relationships of joints, muscle and nerves and discover the myofascial continuities in these regions

The day will begin with a meet & greet session where participants will introduce themselves and share their motivations for choosing this course. This provides us with an opportunity to find out more about you and discover any shared interests, which helps us plan the dissection element of your day. The introduction is followed by a brief presentation about the University’s body donation system and the way the bodies are embalmed and prepared for our courses.

Moving swiftly on, after the first lecture, your next session will be your dissection room orientation. We understand that for many people this will be their first experience of human dissection and the thought of dissection may very well be daunting. Karl will help gently guide you through the process and carefully make sure that you are happy with each step. The aim is to provide an open, safe and collaborative environment where we all work together in an effort to understand human anatomy. During the course there is no obligation to participate in anything that you do not feel comfortable with, please always feel free to say so.

Within this course Karl Jacobs will perform a dissection on the head, neck, thorax and spine.

Skin, subcutaneous tissue including the superficial fascia and superficial muscles:

We will start dissecting by removing the skin and studying its layers, the superficial fascia, adipose tissue and the deep fascia and its relationship with the muscles. The first few hours of dissection can be difficult and might even be a little bit frustrating.

As you dissect, the continuity of the fascia will become appreciable, a fact which is rarely demonstrated in anatomy books, the more you follow it, the more it will reveal regarding its relation to underlying structures.

For details about the topics of the day please take a look at the programme page of this course.

During this course you will discover continuity of structures throughout the fascia and determine how structures relate to each other.