Table 1.
Descriptive statistics
| Variable | Overall (n = 23) |
Virtual dissection group (n = 10) |
Textbook group (n = 13) |
p |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age (years) | 20.9 ± 0.6 | 21.0 ± 0.6 | 20.8 ± 0.4 | 0.23 |
| Gender | 0.97 | |||
| Males | 16 (70%) | 7 (70%) | 9 (69%) | |
| Females | 7 (30%) | 3 (30%) | 4 (31%) | |
| Scoring arithmetic mean for passed examinations | 26.9 ± 1.7 | 27.1 ± 2.1 | 26.7 ± 1.5 | 0.55 |
| Scoring weighted mean for passed examinations | 26.7 ± 2.0 | 26.9 ± 2.4 | 26.6 ± 1.6 | 0.70 |
| Scoring obtained at the anatomy examination | 25.3 ± 1.7 | 25.6 ± 2.4 | 25.2 ± 2.1 | 0.74 |
| Number of repeated examinations | 1.2 ± 1.6 | 0 [1] | 1 [2] | 0.27 |
| Classification in the national selection test | 1418 ± 938 | 1332 ± 643 | 1483 ± 1137 | 0.71 |
| Scoring obtained at the preliminary test | 0.65 | |||
| Absolute score | 5 ± 1.7 | 5 [1] | 5 [2] | |
| Relative score (%) | 50 ± 17 | 50 [10] | 50 [20] | |
| Scoring obtained at the post-test | 0.62 | |||
| Absolute score | 10.9 ± 3.2 | 11.3 ± 3.7 | 10.6 ± 2.9 | |
| Relative score (%) | 68.2 ± 20.1 | 70.6 ± 23.4 | 66.3 ± 18.0 | |
| Participants passing the examination (n)* | 11 (47.8%) | 5 (50%) | 6 (46.1%) |
Parametric variables were described as mean ± standard deviation; non parametric variables are reported as median with interquartile range (Q3−Q1) within square brackets
Preliminary comparisons of considered variables between virtual dissection vs textbook groups were performed by t-Student test or Mann–Whitney U-test as appropriate, to verify the effectiveness of random allocation. A two-sided p < 0.05 indicated statistical significance
*The final post-experimental test provided a score which was coded as positive ['passed examination' (PE)] if it was greater than 70% of the maximum score obtainable