Human Anatomy Self-Assessment Review Questions and answers

Human body parts diagram

Table of Contents 

Section A

1. Back and Spine 
2. Upper Limb 
3. Lower Limb 
4. Thoracic Wall ,Pleura and Lungs
5. Mediastinum 
6. Abdomen 
7. Pelvis and Perineum 
8. Head and Face 
9. Mouth and Pharynx 
10. Neck and Larynx
11. Orbit, Eye and Ear 

Section B

1. Cardiovascular System

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Preface

Human anatomy is one of the foundational disciplines in the training of health care professionals. Knowledge of human structure at both the macroscopic and microscopic levels serves as a framework for the study of normal function and dysfunction.

 Resources used by students in their efforts to learn about human anatomy are exceptionally diverse in terms of scope, depth and focus as well as in the modalities and pedagogical approaches used. Diversity also exists in how knowledge acquisition is measured and evaluated. 

 Many students are familiar with formative and summative tests structured in the multiple-choice format. Most high stakes exams utilize this format and not surprisingly, numerous self-assessment resources are available to help students prepare for these types of examinations. 

 The self-assessment questions presented here are intended to help students in a different setting, a setting such as a ward, the clinic or the operating room where questions from teachers and preceptors are not likely to be presented as recognition exercises, that is, in the multiple-choice format, but rather as recall tasks. When information is obtained from patients in a teaching setting, it is not typical for a teacher to pose a question by asking “Which of the following five conditions does the patient have?” More likely the student will be asked to supply answer or explanation to an open-ended inquiry, i.e. “What arteries do you think we will have to ligate in order to remove this inflamed appendix safely”. In this situation, the student will have to recall information or facts from previous experience or learning. Educators commonly describe this behavior as demonstrating knowledge by recall rather than recognition.

 The anatomy questions included here are formatted in the short answer or fill in the blank style that requires the retrieval rather than the recognition of information; a format more closely aligned with that needed for everyday clinical practice.

 Each chapter includes a series of questions related to a particular area of anatomy. Answers to those questions are included at the end of each chapter. It is our belief that this alternate approach to self-assessment in basic human anatomy will be helpful to students in preparing for clinical based learning activities as well as for other types of knowledge assessment and evaluation.  

Based on Human Anatomy  Self-Assessment Review Questions and answers by Michael F. Nolan, John P. McNamara, Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine in association with Virginia Tech Publishing 

Blacksburg, VA

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.