Schmidt 2021 - Teaching Breast Ultrasound Skills Including Core-Needle Biopsies on a Phantom

Q: What was the purpose of the breast ultrasound training program?

To determine whether teaching breast ultrasound skills, including ultrasound-guided core-needle biopsies, improves undergraduate students’ medical knowledge and learning satisfaction.

Q: How was the training delivered and evaluated?

Students received supplemental theoretical and hands-on ultrasound training, then were assessed before and after using MCQs, OSCE, and a student curriculum evaluation.

Q: What outcomes did the study find after training?

MCQ results showed a significant increase in theoretical knowledge, OSCE demonstrated successful practical implementation of the skills, and the curriculum evaluation was generally very positive.

Sep 20, 2026

Uploaded by Callum

The study investigates whether a supplemental training program in breast ultrasound skills—covering ultrasound screening and ultrasound-guided core-needle biopsy using an agar–agar phantom—improves undergraduate medical students’ knowledge and learning satisfaction. Medical students received trainers’ instruction based on Peyton’s 4-step approach and were assessed before and after training. Knowledge gains were measured with MCQs, practical competence with OSCE, and satisfaction with a curriculum evaluation.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages6

Reading Time15 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

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Archives of Gynecology and Obstetrics [https://doi.org/10.1007/s00404-021-06016-8](https://doi.org/10.1007/s00404-021-06016-8) Teaching breast ultrasound skills including core‑needle biopsies on a phantom enhances undergraduate student’s knowledge and learning satisfaction G. Schmidt1 · C. Gerlinger1 · J. Endrikat1 · L. Gabriel1 · C. Müller1 · S. Baus1 · T. Volk1 · Sebastian Findeklee1,2 · E. F. Solomayer1 · A. Hamza1,3 · R. Ströder1 Received: 12 October 2020 / Accepted: 23 February 2021 © The Author(s) 2021 Abstract Purpose To investigate whether a training program on breast ultrasound skills including core-needle biopsies to undergraduate students can improve medical knowledge and learning satisfaction. Methods Medical students attending mandatory classes at the Medical School of the University of Saarland received a supplemental theoretical and hands-on training program on ultrasound (US) breast screening and on US-guided core-needle biopsy using an agar–agar phantom. Experienced breast specialists and ultrasound examiners served as trainers applying Peyton’s 4-step training approach. The students’ theoretical knowledge and hands-on skills were tested before and after the training program, using a multiple-choice questionnaire (MCQ), the Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) and a student curriculum evaluation. Results The MCQ results showed a significant increase of the student’s theoretical knowledge (50.2–75.2%, p < 0.001) . After the course, the OSCE showed a mean total of 17.3/20 points (86.5%), confirming the practical implementation of the new skills. The student curriculum evaluation in general was very positive. A total of 16/20 questions were rated between 1.2 and 1.7 (very good) and 3 questions were rated as 2.1 (good) . Conclusion Undergraduate student’s medical education can be enhanced by teaching breast US skills. Keywords Breast ultrasound · Teaching · Undergraduate · Peyton · Core-needle biopsy Introduction Ultrasound (US) is widely used in diagnostic medicine as it is non-invasive, painless, fast & easy to perform, inexpensive and does not apply ionizing radiation [1] . It provides accurate images of tissue structures and offers valuable diagnostic information. US is used in almost every sub-specialty of obstetrics and gynecology, e.g., fetal medicine, general and specialized gynecology and senology [2, 3] . * G. Schmidt [gilda.schmidt@uks.eu](gilda.schmidt@uks.eu) 1 Department of Gynecology, Obstetrics and Reproductive Medicine, University Medical School of Saarland, Kirrberger Straße, 66421 HomburgSaar, Germany 2 MVZ Fertility Center Hamburg, 20095 Hamburg, Germany 3 Department of Gynecology, Obstetrics, Kantonsspital Baden AG, 5404 Baden, Switzerland While US devices are widely used the quality of the devices and the experience of the examiners vary widely. Both factors are key for accurate diagnosis. The examiner must be well-trained and have a deep knowledge of anatomy, physiology and pathology in order to be able to correlate US findings with clinical findings [4] . Today, most undergraduate students passively watch US examinations during their practical training, as available time of the experts and the number of patients willing to take part are limited. Therefore, US screening is not usually included in the undergraduate curriculum. Furthermore, USguided core-needle biopsy is an essential diagnostic tool for the evaluation of breast lesions [5, 6, 7] . In Germany, breast US training and certification is governed by the German Society of Ultrasound in Medicine (DEGUM) . US examiners are classified according to their experience, training and certification into three levels [8] . In order to motivate future clinicians, the society included undergraduate education in their training programs [9] . The ability to use US as a diagnostic and interventional tool is an important complement to basic clinical skills [4, 10, 11, 12] . Training on phantoms

FAQs

What was the purpose of the breast ultrasound training program?

To determine whether teaching breast ultrasound skills, including ultrasound-guided core-needle biopsies, improves undergraduate students’ medical knowledge and learning satisfaction.

How was the training delivered and evaluated?

Students received supplemental theoretical and hands-on ultrasound training, then were assessed before and after using MCQs, OSCE, and a student curriculum evaluation.

What outcomes did the study find after training?

MCQ results showed a significant increase in theoretical knowledge, OSCE demonstrated successful practical implementation of the skills, and the curriculum evaluation was generally very positive.

Sep 20, 2026

Uploaded by Callum