Abstract:AIM: To address the problem of cognitive overload and deviation from core teaching objectives caused by information redundancy in traditional case-based teaching in ophthalmology, Occam's Razor principle was innovatively applied to construct a set of streamlined case-based teaching resources, and their effectiveness was subsequently validated.
METHODS:This was a prospective randomized controlled trial. Intern students from the 2019 and 2020 cohorts of the five-year clinical medicine program who completed their ophthalmology clerkship at the Department of Ophthalmology, Tangdu Hospital, Air Force Medical University between June 2023 and May 2025 were enrolled. By using a random number table, they were randomly assigned to an experimental group and a control group. Cases refined by Occam's Razor principle(removing irrelevant information and focusing on core principles, clinical reasoning, and the diagnostic and therapeutic workflow)were adopted for the experimental group, whereas the original complete cases were used for the control group. Teaching effectiveness was assessed through knowledge tests, classroom performance evaluation, teaching case assessment, and student satisfaction.
RESULTS:Totally 120 students were included in this study and all of them completed the research. There were 60 students in the experimental group(43 males and 17 females, mean age 21.72±0.76 y)and 60 students in control group(41 males and 19 females, mean age 21.68±0.57 y)(all P>0.05). The score rates on the ocular trauma section and on the case analysis questions were significantly higher in the experimental group than in the control group(83.21%±7.96% vs 74.25%±11.01%; 84.31%±8.08% vs 67.62%±11.63%; both P<0.001). Teacher evaluations indicated that the experimental group achieved better scores than the control group in aspects such as identification of key case points and logical clinical reasoning(all P<0.001). A significantly lower cognitive load score was observed in the experimental group, whereas higher scores were obtained for clarity of case structure, thought-provoking quality, and teaching value(all P<0.001). The teaching satisfaction rate reached 95% in the experimental group, which was higher than the 83% observed in the control group(P<0.05).
CONCLUSION: Refined cases guided by Occam's Razor principle can significantly reduce cognitive load, enhance medical students' efficiency in mastering core diagnostic and therapeutic principles, improve the precision of clinical reasoning, and strengthen execution of clinical procedures, thereby providing an innovative pathway for clinical teaching reform.
