I really need help. How do I even begin to learn head anatomy?

[FlatIsJustice]

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My school does a very poor job of teaching it so it's up to me to learn it myself. The problem I'm facing is that everything in the head is intertwined with everything else. I can't just learn the bones and then the muscles and then vasculature and then the nervous system like I did with other parts of the body. The path of so many things goes through various foramina and follows other nerves or arteries or veins so I just don't know where to start. I can't learn one system in isolation but I also can't learn everything at once.

Is there any resource that can help me with this?

 

[Psai]

acland videos

 

[zaztong]

acland videos

Seconded. Acland before lab dissection is a winner.
Print this out: http://library.med.utah.edu/diganat/SOM/unit_3/lec/CN tutorial/CN_Tutorial.html
BRS Anatomy is also worth the buy.
Use as many mnemonics as possible.

Killed head and neck.

 

[FindMeOnTheLinks]

One thing that really helped me for difficult anatomy (head and neck, pelvic) is just sitting down with my atlas and really taking a close look at the spatial arrangement of the structures. Having that picture really helped me to visualize things when it comes to the descriptive part of anatomy (lecture and exam questions).

I second using BRS anatomy head and neck section. They explain it well. If you can answer those questions you are good to go.


Sent from my iPhone using SDN mobile

 

[ConfusedChemist]

A whiteboard.

Draw all the foramina, list all their nerves/vessels running through them over and over again until it's solid. I also found it helped to break it down into sections like skull, face, neck, and learn everything in context rather than by bones, then muscles, then CN's, etc

 

[akinetopsia]

Having access to a skull and models + specimens helps tremendously. On a skull, you can use a wire or probe to help you figure out the path of different vessels and nerves. It's not easy but you have to be systematic about it. You need to figure out how you learn. Does sketching anatomy help? Drawing flowcharts? Spending time with specimens?

Some people like to start with cranial nerves. CN I is easy - goes through the cribriform plate of the ethmoid. Build off that, and like other people said, there are a lot of openings to know - but it helps when some are lumped together, e.g. the jugular foramen transmits CN IX, X and XI. Also important to know the divisions of CN V and which openings V1, V2, and V3 go through, and what passes through the cavernous sinus. I've also found it helpful to think about clinical correlations, e.g. "what would be the signs or symptoms of a patient that had a lesion in this area?"

Practice, practice, practice. Find a partner(s) and quiz each other. Use a probe or wire and just ask, "What goes through here? Is it motor, sensory, or both? What muscle(s) does it supply?"

 

[Cognovi]

headneckbrainspine.com

 

[Keona]

Get a skull off of Amazon. I also bought a few 4d puzzles off of there which helped. Drawing pictures of relationships also helps