A prosector is a person with the special task of preparing a

dissection Dissection (from Latin ' "to cut to pieces"; also called anatomization) is the dismembering of the body of a deceased animal or plant to study its anatomical structure. Autopsy is used in pathology and forensic medicine to determine the cause of ...

for demonstration, usually in

medical school A medical school is a tertiary educational institution, professional school, or forms a part of such an institution, that teaches medicine, and awards a professional degree for physicians. Such medical degrees include the Bachelor of Medicine, ...

s or

hospital A hospital is a healthcare institution providing patient treatment with specialized Medical Science, health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically ...

s. Many important

anatomist Anatomy () is the branch of morphology concerned with the study of the internal structure of organisms and their parts. Anatomy is a branch of natural science that deals with the structural organization of living things. It is an old scien ...

s began their careers as prosectors working for lecturers and demonstrators in

anatomy Anatomy () is the branch of morphology concerned with the study of the internal structure of organisms and their parts. Anatomy is a branch of natural science that deals with the structural organization of living things. It is an old scien ...

and

pathology Pathology is the study of disease. The word ''pathology'' also refers to the study of disease in general, incorporating a wide range of biology research fields and medical practices. However, when used in the context of modern medical treatme ...

. The act of prosecting differs from that of dissecting. A prosection is a professionally prepared dissection prepared by a prosector – a person who is well versed in anatomy and who therefore prepares a specimen so that others may study and learn anatomy from it. A dissection is prepared by a student who is dissecting the specimen for the purpose of learning more about the anatomical structures pertaining to that specimen. The term dissection may also be used to describe the act of cutting. Therefore, a prosector dissects to prepare a prosection. Prosecting is intricate work where numerous tools are used to produce a desired specimen. Scalpels and scissors allow for sharp dissection where tissue is cut, e.g. the

biceps brachii muscle The biceps or biceps brachii (, "two-headed muscle of the arm") is a large muscle that lies on the front of the upper arm between the shoulder and the elbow. Both Muscle head, heads of the muscle arise on the scapula and join to form a single ...

can be removed from the specimen by cutting the origin and insertion with a

scalpel A scalpel or bistoury is a small and extremely sharp bladed instrument used for surgery, anatomical dissection, podiatry and various handicrafts. A lancet is a double-edged scalpel. Scalpel blades are usually made of hardened and tempered ...

. Probes and the prosector's own fingers are examples of tools used for blunt dissection where tissue may be separated from surrounding structures without cutting, i.e. the bellies of biceps brachii and coracobrachialis muscle were made clearer by loosening the fascia between the two muscles with a blunt probe.

Occupational risks

Generally, the risks to prosectors are low. Cadavers used for teaching purposes are embalmed before they are encountered by a prosector and students. Embalming fluid usually contains formaldehyde,

phenol Phenol (also known as carbolic acid, phenolic acid, or benzenol) is an aromatic organic compound with the molecular formula . It is a white crystalline solid that is volatile and can catch fire. The molecule consists of a phenyl group () ...

Dettol Dettol is a brand line of products used for disinfectant, disinfection and as an antiseptic. This brand was created with the introduction of Dettol antiseptic liquid in 1933 by the British company Reckitt, Reckitt and Colman. The Dettol brand li ...

, and glycerine which disinfect and kill pathogens within the cadaver. With exposure to embalming fluid, tissues and bodily fluids, such as blood, become fixed. Prosectors and students working with embalmed cadavers must always wear protective gloves, but that is more for protection against the harsh chemicals used in embalming, such as formaldehyde and Dettol, which can cause moderate to severe skin irritation. Further to the protection that embalming provides against disease, educational institutions take great care in screening the cadavers accepted into their body donation programs. Cadavers are not accepted if they have a medical history of infectious disease such as

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...

and

HIV/AIDS The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...

. Prosectors for autopsies of

disease A disease is a particular abnormal condition that adversely affects the structure or function (biology), function of all or part of an organism and is not immediately due to any external injury. Diseases are often known to be medical condi ...

cadaver A cadaver, often known as a corpse, is a Death, dead human body. Cadavers are used by medical students, physicians and other scientists to study anatomy, identify disease sites, determine causes of death, and provide tissue (biology), tissue to ...

s may run a high risk of suffering from health problems when caution is not used, because cadavers are not fixed when being dissected for autopsy. At least two diseases are named after prosectors: * Prosector's paronychia: a primary inoculation of

of the

skin Skin is the layer of usually soft, flexible outer tissue covering the body of a vertebrate animal, with three main functions: protection, regulation, and sensation. Other animal coverings, such as the arthropod exoskeleton, have different ...

and nails. * Prosector's wart, a skin lesion, also caused by contamination with tuberculous material Contracting infections caused by contaminated cadavers is a constant danger among prosectors, particularly if a skin puncture accident results from the sharp surgical instruments used in this kind of work (about 70% of pathology workers report having at least one percutaneous incident). In those cases, thin surgical gloves do not provide protection. There are many cases of pathologists dying of acute

sepsis Sepsis is a potentially life-threatening condition that arises when the body's response to infection causes injury to its own tissues and organs. This initial stage of sepsis is followed by suppression of the immune system. Common signs and s ...

(blood poisoning) because of that. A famous historical case is that of Ernst von Fleischl-Marxow, an Austrian physician, pathologist and physiologist, who infected his finger during an autopsy and, due to the

pain Pain is a distressing feeling often caused by intense or damaging Stimulus (physiology), stimuli. The International Association for the Study of Pain defines pain as "an unpleasant sense, sensory and emotional experience associated with, or res ...

, became dependent on

morphine Morphine, formerly also called morphia, is an opiate that is found naturally in opium, a dark brown resin produced by drying the latex of opium poppies (''Papaver somniferum''). It is mainly used as an analgesic (pain medication). There are ...

and then

cocaine Cocaine is a tropane alkaloid and central nervous system stimulant, derived primarily from the leaves of two South American coca plants, ''Erythroxylum coca'' and ''Erythroxylum novogranatense, E. novogranatense'', which are cultivated a ...

, the latter at the instigation of his friend,

Sigmund Freud Sigmund Freud ( ; ; born Sigismund Schlomo Freud; 6 May 1856 – 23 September 1939) was an Austrian neurologist and the founder of psychoanalysis, a clinical method for evaluating and treating psychopathology, pathologies seen as originating fro ...

. Presently,

AIDS The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...

presents a problem. Although it is difficult to contract it by a single puncture incident (the overall personal risk has been estimated to be 0.11%), at least one case has been reported among pathologists. The continuous respiratory exposure to formaldehyde, used to preserve

s, is also an occupational risk of prosectors, as well as medical students, anatomists and pathologists. Inhaled formaldehyde can irritate the eyes and mucous membranes, resulting in watery eyes,

headache A headache, also known as cephalalgia, is the symptom of pain in the face, head, or neck. It can occur as a migraine, tension-type headache, or cluster headache. There is an increased risk of Depression (mood), depression in those with severe ...

, a burning sensation in the throat, and difficulty

breath Breathing (spiration or ventilation) is the neuroscience of rhythm, rhythmical process of moving air into (inhalation) and out of (exhalation) the lungs to facilitate gas exchange with the Milieu intérieur, internal environment, mostly to flu ...

ing. Formaldehyde is listed as a potential human

carcinogen A carcinogen () is any agent that promotes the development of cancer. Carcinogens can include synthetic chemicals, naturally occurring substances, physical agents such as ionizing and non-ionizing radiation, and biologic agents such as viruse ...

Famous prosectors

* Jean Zuléma Amussat * Paul Clemens von Baumgarten * Frank Evers Beddard * Christian Albert Theodor Billroth * William Bowman * Paul Broca * Korbinian Brodmann * Ernst Wilhelm von Brücke * Alexis Carrel * Niels Ryberg Finsen * Alessandra Giliani *

Friedrich Gustav Jakob Henle Friedrich Gustav Jakob Henle (; 9 July 1809 – 13 May 1885) was a German physician, pathologist, and anatomist. He is credited with the discovery of the loop of Henle in the kidney. His essay, "On Miasma and Contagia," was an early argument ...

* Josef Hyrtl * Eduard Kaufmann * Albert von Kölliker * Eber Landau * Karl Langer * Paul Langerhans *

Giovanni Battista Morgagni Giovanni Battista Morgagni (25 February 1682 – 6 December 1771) was an Italian anatomy, anatomist, generally regarded as the father of modern anatomical pathology, who taught thousands of medical students from many countries during his 56 year ...

* Jan Evangelista Purkyně *

Heinrich Christian Friedrich Schumacher Heinrich Christian Friedrich Schumacher (15 November 1757 in Glückstadt, Holstein – 9 December 1830) was a Denmark, Danish surgeon, botanist and professor of anatomy at the University of Copenhagen. Schumacher carried out significant research ...

* Joseph Toynbee * Rudolf Virchow

References

{{reflist Anatomical preservation Anatomists