Abstract:
With the various technological advances, the use of new tools for teaching human
anatomy has become increasingly dynamic and efficient. The need to create new
tools that allow greater accuracy in teaching, and also for the use in diagnosing
patients, making it safer and more accurate, has generated several advances in the
creation of new equipment, applications and software, including virtual reality. Thus,
the objective of this study was to evaluate the use of virtual reality in the human
anatomy learning environment. To this end, a bibliographic survey was carried out in
the Periódicos Capes, PubMed, Embase and Medline journals, using the keywords
virtual reality, teaching anatomy, virtual reality and teaching human anatomy. It was
concluded that virtual reality is a tool of great importance, that brings more interest
from students to classes, creates a more productive space, with more refined and
current information about the human body, making it unnecessary the constant use
of cadavers, speeding up research and practical demonstrations. However, several
pieces of equipment and programs are expensive, and many educational institutions
are not able to afford them. It is suggested that this new way of teaching be widely
disseminated, and that research that seeks to reduce the production costs of these
new tools be carried out.