Suturing a pig’s foot: not your grandma’s sewing needle

This past summer, second-year dental students at Marquette Dental School learned that a simple trip to your local butcher can help improve your suturing skills. Towards the end of our “Introduction to Oral Surgery” class this July, our instructor presented us a sim lab full of pig feet! After having lectures the week prior on proper suturing techniques, we were given the chance to practice the different techniques on our very own pig feet. We all grabbed a partner, a scalpel, suturing supplies, and hesitantly reached into a bucket for a foot.