The use of ultrasound as a teaching adjunct is growing quickly, as it allows learners to visualise structures from an integrated perspective enhancing understanding of topographic anatomy. Ultrasound also allows vocational learners to practise important skills (e.g. central venous catheterisation on imaging phantoms). The perceived educational usefulness of hands-on ultrasound and imaging phantoms was assessed using a 0-5 Likert scale. The custom-made phantom was designed in-house using gelatine and penne pasta simulating the echogenicity of neck vessels with and without atherosclerotic plaques. Undergraduate honours science students, from a clinically applied anatomy course, were invited to complete a fully anonymous questionnaire in January 2019 at the University of Glasgow, UK. The teaching session focused on cerebrovascular disease and the students actively scanned the phantoms in the context of carotid disease. As these data were collected anonymously for teaching evaluation to inform future practice, ethical approval was not sought. Data were analysed in SPSS version 24 using non-parametric tests. Twenty-eight out of forty-seven students returned the questionnaires (60% response rate). Based on their experience, 100% of respondents would recommend the use of ultrasound for anatomy learning. The mean score for the perceived usefulness of the ultrasound and imaging phantom as teaching adjuncts in learning the content was 4.96 (SD: 0.189; min-max range: 4-5) and 4.82 (SD: 0.390; min-max range: 4-5) respectively. The mean score for the interaction with the ultrasound aiding understanding of the content was 4.79 (SD: 0.499; min-max range: 3-5). There was a statistically significant correlation between the perceived ultrasound usefulness and the interaction aiding understanding (r=0.394; p=0.038). These data not only highlight the usefulness of hands-on ultrasound within educational settings, but also the potential applications of custom-made imaging phantoms. This area is evolving quickly and more research will allow educationalists to better delineate the role of ultrasound and phantoms
