PHILADELPHIA, April 29, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Wolters Kluwer Health, a leading global provider of information and point-of-care solutions for the healthcare industry, today announced a groundbreaking addition to Acland's Video Atlas of Human Anatomy that literally sheds new light on the intricate—and hard to ascertain—anatomy of the inner ear.  More than two years in the making, these new online educational videos showcase the most innovative and revealing dissections of the human inner ear ever captured.

Created by Robert D. Acland, MD, one of the pioneers and foremost authorities in the field of video anatomy, these new videos are designed to help students of the health sciences as well as practitioners and others gain better anatomical understanding of this highly difficult-to-dissect part of the human body.  These clips, as well as all of the other video content in Acland's Video Atlas, bring a three-dimensional perspective to learning human anatomy by showing each area of interest from multiple angles and viewpoints. 

Dr. Acland achieves this unique perspective using innovative camera rotation techniques that he pioneered with his colleagues at the University of Louisville School of Medicine.  To make the new inner ear videos, Dr. Acland used a high-speed micro drill, which creates a significant amount of bone dust.  The only way to perform a clean dissection and present the results to the camera was to shoot underwater, which allows the dust to be carried away and helps support the delicate structures that would normally collapse in the open air.  The resulting product reveals new insights and never-before-seen imagery of this complex part of the human body.

"There's not a single book that allows for a three-dimensional understanding of the inner ear," said Dr. Acland, Professor Emeritus in the Department of Anatomical Sciences at the University of Louisville School of Medicine and creator of Acland's Video Atlas of Human Anatomy.  "That's because its structures are intricately shaped, very small and delicate, and encased in rock-hard bone.  Illustrators have struggled over two centuries to produce meaningful two-dimensional images of this very three-dimensional structure."

Today—with the advent of these new videos—students are able to view these structures three-dimensionally for the first time.

Because the inner ear is so difficult to dissect, most students have never seen it in its true form.  Many instructors, in fact, have struggled to understand it and as a result, many institutions have removed it from their curricula.  Even Dr. Acland himself purposely omitted the content from Acland's Video Atlas when it was first developed due to the challenges it posed for him as a microsurgeon and videographer. 

Dr. Acland expects, however, that these videos will help reinvigorate study of inner ear anatomy by making it more accessible and less difficult to teach.  Although it will benefit students in medical and related health sciences, even the most accomplished otolaryngologists will marvel at the exquisiteness of this series.

A total of five striking, new instructional videos dedicated to the inner ear have been added.  With a run time totaling more than 22 minutes, these clips cover the bony labyrinth and its relationships; the membranous labyrinth and fluids of the inner ear; the vestibule of the inner ear; the semicircular ducts; and the cochlea.  Also included is a series of 3-D animations and numerous histology images to supplement understanding.

Acland's Video Atlas of Human Anatomy contains 333 video clips of real human anatomic specimens in their natural colors.  Organized into five volumes including the upper and lower extremities, the trunk, head and neck, as well as the internal organs, the Atlas shows moving structures—muscles, tendons, and joints—making the same movements that they make in real life.  

The Atlas is an excellent resource for anatomy students, as an adjunct to dissection or prosection, and as a review tool.  It also is helpful for students who need to re-learn clinically relevant anatomy for surgical or radiology rotations, and for pre-med students as well as interns and residents in these specialties.  Surgeons, radiologists, and other specialists in speech/language disorders and communication studies also will find it useful.

Acland's Video Atlas of Human Anatomy, powered by Silverchair, is hosted on a web-based platform at https://aclandanatomy.com.  Content on the site can be accessed from any web-enabled Mac, PC, tablet or smartphone.  The full atlas with the new inner ear videos is available immediately via institutional subscription for medical, health professions and nursing schools, and healthcare institutions.  Individuals can purchase 6- or 12-month access to the full site or to the Head and Neck volume (where the Inner Ear videos are featured) directly at https://store.aclandanatomy.com/ or through lww.com.  For more information, please visit https://aclandanatomy.com.

About Wolters Kluwer Health
Wolters Kluwer Health is a leading global provider of information, business intelligence and point-of-care solutions for the healthcare industry. Serving more than 150 countries worldwide, clinicians rely on Wolters Kluwer Health's market leading information-enabled tools and software solutions throughout their professional careers from training to research to practice. Major brands include Health Language^®, Lexicomp^®, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Medicom^®, Medi-Span^®, Medknow, Ovid^®, Pharmacy OneSource^®, ProVation^® Medical and UpToDate^®.

Wolters Kluwer Health is part of Wolters Kluwer, a market-leading global information services company. Wolters Kluwer had 2013 annual revenues of €3.6 billion (US$4.7 billion), employs approximately 19,000 people worldwide, and maintains operations in over 40 countries across Europe, North America, Asia Pacific, and Latin America. Follow our official Twitter handle: @WKHealth.  

Video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G604Mhwjaz8&list=UU-gD0JksASNmRNs5tMBei0g
Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130925/PH86273LOGO-b

SOURCE Wolters Kluwer Health