Evaluation of equine perineural anesthesia simulators with integrated success control for veterinary education.

The skills necessary to perform diagnostic perineural anesthesia in equids belongs to one of the Day One Competences of a veterinarian, so every veterinary graduate should be able to perform them correctly. For logistical, hygienic and ethical reasons, practical exercises on cadaver limbs are not accessible to all students. Two equine distal limb simulators were developed and evaluated as an additional instructional tool to train the required skills.

A common stay-on-goal mechanism in anterior cingulate cortex for information and effort choices.

Humans and non-humans alike often make choices to gain information, even when the information cannot be used to change the outcome. Prior research has shown the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) is important for evaluating options involving reward-predictive information. Here we studied the role of ACC in information choices using optical inhibition to evaluate the contribution of this region during specific epochs of decision making.

Exploring the use of immunomethylomics in the characterization of depressed patients: A proof-of-concept study.

Alterations in DNA methylation and inflammation could represent valid biomarkers for the stratification of patients with major depressive disorder (MDD). This study explored the use of DNA-methylation based immunological cell-type profiles in the context of MDD and symptom severity over time. In 119 individuals with MDD, DNA-methylation was assessed on whole blood using the Illumina Infinium MethylationEPIC 850 k BeadChip.

Evaluation of an Interprofessional Blended Learning Course Focusing on Communication within Veterinary Teams.

Based on the importance of communication and teamwork in veterinary practice, we explored the impact of a blended learning course designed to enhance interprofessional communication skills among veterinary students and apprentice assistants. The blended learning course design included online modules, synchronous (online) seminars, and simulation training sessions. The asynchronous online elements should complement the varied schedules of different professions and meet the individual needs of participants, especially considering the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Simulator-Assisted Training of Abomasal Surgery-A Pilot Study Using Blended Learning and Face-to-Face Teaching.

Two stimulators were developed, one simplified and one realistic, in the present study for learning abomasal surgery for veterinary students. The simulators were tested in a pilot study: The upcoming blended learning format was compared with traditional face-to-face teaching. A total of 21 5th-year students participated in the study.