Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40365579›Full record

Trial reportCanadian medical education journal2025

Can relaxation exercises improve students' OSCE grades: a prospective study.

Damien Massalou, Jérôme Doyen, Fabien Almairac, Pierre-Simon Rohrlich, Jean-Paul Fournier, Clair Vandersteen, Nirvana Sadaghianloo

Abstract readRandomized Controlled Trial
In one paragraph

Trial report in Canadian medical education journal, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Embracing the next frontier in assessment.Canadian medical education journal · 2025
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Damien MassalouDigestive surgery, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Nice, Université Côte d'Azur, Nice, France.
Jérôme DoyenDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Centre Antoine-Lacassagne, University of Côte d'Azur, France.
Fabien AlmairacNeurosurgery department, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Nice, Université Côte d'Azur, France.
Pierre-Simon RohrlichDepartment of Pediatric Hemato-Oncology, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Nice, Université Côte d'Azur, Nice, France.
Jean-Paul FournierEmergency Department, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Nice, Université Côte d'Azur, Nice, France.
Clair VandersteenInstitut Universitaire de la Face et du Cou, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire, Université Côte d'Azur, Nice, France.
Nirvana SadaghianlooDepartment of Vascular Surgery, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Nice, Université Côte d'Azur, Nice, France.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Introduction: OSCE (Objective Structured Clinical Examination) are a means of assessing health profession students. However, they are a source of stress or anxiety for students. The aim of our study was to improve medical students' performance during OSCEs by using human performance optimization techniques (HPOT). Methods: Naïve students for OSCE were divided into blocks of five, randomized to HPOT and control groups. Before starting their OSCE circuit, HPOT blocks underwent a 30-minute preparation session. Anxiety was assessed before and after the OSCE using a Visual Analogic Scale (VAS). Results: We randomized and assigned 206 students to 41 blocks of which 20 were HPOT and 21 were control. Anxiety before the exam was significantly reduced thanks to the HPOT procedure with a median value of six and four on the VAS respectively before and after the relaxation session ( Conclusion: Relaxation, conscious breathing, and positive reinforcement methods reduced students' anxiety prior to their OSCE; however, these techniques did not improve their scores.

Indexed as

AnxietyClinical CompetenceEducational MeasurementEducation, Medical, UndergraduateRelaxation TherapyStudents, MedicalFemaleHumansMaleProspective StudiesYoung Adult

Identifiers

PMID40365579
PMCPMC12068205

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.