Reproductive Physiology

Clinical Application Exercise Small Group

February 11, 2015

Session Logistics
Wednesday, February 11th

Students will be grouped in Sequence Small Groups (12 groups of ~15 students each)

Room Assignments are located on CTools

Sessions will run end approximately 5-10 minutes early to allow for feedback to student
facilitators from faculty moderators.
Student facilitators will receive facilitation guide several days prior to the session.

In the unlikely event that your small group facilitator does not show up at the prescribed time
please call Veronica at 763-0168 so an alternate facilitator can be found immediately and or
you can be reassigned to an alternative small group.

General Learning Objectives for the Session

1. Provide opportunity to discuss, analyze, and interpret signs and symptoms as they relate to
the underlying physiological principles you have learned.
The purpose of these sessions is not to teach you how to diagnosis or treat specific diseases
but to provide practice in applying physiological principles to interpreting various
pathophysiological states.
Moderation and Facilitation
Two students will volunteer to facilitate this session. All students will rotate facilitation duties
throughout the year.
Role of Student Facilitator:
1. Become familiar enough with foundational material to be able to direct group towards
solving problems
2. Facilitator will not held accountable for being the absolute content expert that is the role of
the faculty moderator
3. Review facilitator guide and utilize techniques to guide productive group discussion
4. Will be provided with the moderators guide for Part I of the case (It is highly recommended
that student facilitators try to work through the case before looking at answers during their
facilitator preparation)
Role of Faculty Moderator:
1. Time-keeper: ensure group is able to cover all the material within the allotted time
2. Fact-checker: ensure group works with and arrives at correct information
3. Clarify questions if group is lost
4. Push discussion to appropriate level, and beyond when applicable
1

Reproductive Physiology
Clinical Application Exercise Small Group

February 11, 2015

5. Ensure that pedagogy is active and not mini-lectures by student facilitator

6. Document attendance and collect pre-work
7. Assess student facilitators and provide formative narrative feedback to them

Reproductive Physiology
Clinical Application Exercise Small Group

February 11, 2015

Expected Student Participation

Required Reading/Review
Lectures on Reproductive Physiology
Required Preparation/Prework
Students are to complete the attached questions in Part I only with their answers to the questions
prior to the session and bring it with them to the session. Students may keep their worksheet during
the session to aid in discussion. This worksheet is to be turned in to the faculty moderator at the end
of the session and will be checked off and returned immediately to the student.
Assessment
All students (except the facilitators) will be assessed by turning in a worksheet with Part I
completed at the conclusion of the session. These will be assessed on completeness and effort with a
credit/no credit grading scheme. Student facilitators will receive credit for this assignment by virtue
of their facilitation.
Student facilitators will receive formative verbal and written feedback on their facilitation of the
group. This is for student improvement only and does not factor into the sequence grade.

Reproductive Physiology
Clinical Application Exercise Small Group

February 11, 2015

(Filled in prior to session and shown to faculty moderator to check off at end of session)
Name: __________________
Part I: Student Facilitator-Led Case Presentation

Infertility
History: A 32 year old Hispanic female comes to your office with the chief complaint of being unable to
become pregnant. She and her husband have been trying to conceive for over 2 years but have had no
success. She reports that her husband had recently undergone a fertility work-up and was found normal. She
has no major health problems, although she has noticed some dark hair growth on the sides of her face and in
the abdominal area. She also has noted some weight gain recently.
Physical Examination Results
Height 5 1 Weight 163 lbs, she tells you about 10 lb. more than her usual weight
Hip/waist ratio 1.03 (BMI 30.8)
Hirsutism hair on lateral sides of face, lower abdominal area
Pelvic exam: No masses, ovaries not palpated
Otherwise unremarkable.

Required Preparation/Prework
Try to be succinct and specific but use additional pages if necessary.
Question1.

Althoughnotrevealedfromwhatshetellsyou,whatwouldbeafirstcriticalquestiontoask
whendeterminingfertilityproblemswithfemalepatients?Whatelsemightbeimportantin
evaluatingfertility?

Question2.

Thinkthroughthephysiologyofthemenstrualcycle.Whichfeaturesareuniquetofemales
andarerequiredforovulation?

Question3.

Whathormoneswouldyouwanttomeasure?Howfrequentlyandwhendoyouwanttotake
samples?Whatinformationmighttheyprovide?

Reproductive Physiology
Clinical Application Exercise Small Group

February 11, 2015

Reproductive Physiology
Clinical Application Exercise Small Group

February 11, 2015

Part II: Faculty Moderator-Led Discussion (faculty moderators will distribute lab values)

Question4. Whathormonesmightbethecauseofthehirsutism?Explainthesourcesofthese
hormonesandtheirphysiologyintheovary,e.g.howstimulated,convertedtowhatbywhichcells.
Whereelsemightthesehormonescomefromandhowcouldyoudistinguishbetweenthetwo
sources?

Question5. ThinkthroughthephysiologyofFSHandLH.Understandwhichtargetcellseachof
thesehormonesactsupon.Thiswillhelpinyourunderstandingoftheovarianeffects.Whatcellsin
themaleareanalogoustotheirfemalecounterparts?

Question6. Whattypesofmorphologicaltestsmightyouperformthatmightrelatetothe
hormonalimbalance?

Question7. Formulateseveralhypothesesaboutovarianabnormalitiesthatcouldbetakingplace.
Asahint,focusonthehirsutismandwhatyouknowcausesthis.

Question8.

Whatfundamentalproblemsattheovarianlevelcouldexplainherpathology?

Question9.

Whatfundamentalproblemsattheneuroendocrinelevelcouldexplainherpathology?

Reproductive Physiology
Clinical Application Exercise Small Group

February 11, 2015