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Physiology Course - Cardiovascular Lab Facts

Physiology Course:

• The MCW physiology course includes elective laboratory components with simulators (Computerized Simulation of Cardiovascular Hemodynamics) and animal models (Circulatory Control).  Attendance is not required in either lab.
• More than 90% of the medical students elect to participate in the animal model component.
• The animal model laboratory is consistently ranked in student assessments as the single most useful learning experience among all others provided in the physiology coursework. 
• Students cite this course as providing the first opportunity to know how one will react and perform when dealing with the real life situation.
• The use of live animals in this course is strongly endorsed by the American Physiological Society.
• Medical schools no longer offering the animal model course cite high costs and the commitment of faculty time as their rationale.  They do not challenge the educational merits of the course.

Care of Animals

• Dogs are humanely treated and are under heavy anesthesia at all times during the lab.  The animals do not suffer nor are they ever conscious. They are anesthetized by veterinarians and professional staff members before the students enter the laboratory.  At the completion of the lab, the dogs are euthanized with an overdose of anesthesia.
• The 60 dogs used in the lab are purchased from a licensed, USDA vendor.  None of the dogs have been pets and would have been euthanized, if not made available for this course.
• In 2008, the Medical College may use pigs as the animal model for this course.

Facts about the cardiovascular lab course (in pdf format).