NEWS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday 10 January 2002
CONTACT:
Simon Chaitowitz, Communications Director
tel: 202-686-2210, ext. 309; simonc@pcrm.org
Doctors Declare Victory in Battle Over Gruesome Nipple Surgery Labs
The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) today praised Des Moines
University College of Osteopathic Medicine and Surgery (DMU) for ending a controversial
surgical exercise in which medical students cut off the nipples of live dogs and then
sewed them back on. The Washington, D.C.-based doctors group had been campaigning against
the gruesome laboratories for the past 18 months.
In dropping the animal surgery laboratory,
DMU joins a common trend in medical education. Three-quarters of
U.S. medical schools, including Harvard, Yale, and Stanford, have
dropped all animal laboratories from their curricula. "There
is never a need for practicing surgery in animals," said PCRM
president Neal D. Barnard,
M.D. "Surgical skill relies on knowing human anatomy, not
dog anatomy. Training on animals teaches students the wrong anatomical
landmarks and the wrong 'feel.'"
In surgical residencies, doctors in training learn the individual components of
surgery, one at a time, without ever using animals. Once trainees are skilled at suturing
on simulators or Styrofoam blocks, they are then allowed to sew up minor cuts under close
supervision. They will then learn the other surgical techniques, such as incisions or
cauterizing bleeding vessels, while working alongside more experienced surgeons in the
human operating room.
PCRM had sent the university extensive information on nonanimal training methods,
including a videotape narrated by famed surgeon Henry Heimlich, M.D., depicting Harvard
Medical School's use of nonanimal teaching methods.
"The faculty, the students—and quite a few dogs—will breathe a sigh of
relief," Dr. Barnard said.
Dr. Barnard noted that many aspects of medical training are undergoing the same change.
Approximately 20 U.S. medical centers offer advanced trauma training courses using
simulators or cadavers, instead of live animals.
Founded in 1985, PCRM is a national health
organization dedicated to promoting preventive medicine and higher
standards in medical research, education, and practice.
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