Clinico-pathological correlation: Teaching aspects, avenues, and advances

INTRODUCTION: Explosion in scientific knowledge of our understanding of diseases, diagnostics, and targeted therapeutics all possible & advantageously with Clinico-pathological correlation (CPC). A narrative of evolution from the past to the present & the novelty in the future is exciting, with pragmatic presentation of important recent developments & interesting research directions, for ‘evolving excellence’. METHODS: Analysis of the guidance was produced by leading medical education institutions and an in-depth search on Google Scholar, Medline, and PubMed for CPC. We thoughtfully formulated ways of incorporation of CPC for teaching and training of medical students at different levels. We put available policies, evidence, and personal experience gleaned in proper perspective. RESULTS: The four HPs (i) Historical perspective… Tracing the progress, the important developments extending the physician’s range are clinical correlation with the outgivings of chemical analysis and biological experimentation. (ii) Holistic professionalism: Integrating Basic and Clinical Sciences. Knowledge for practice and knowledge applications in practice are two pillars of medical education. Learning opportunities provisioning should enable linking of theory and practice. (iii) The happening perfect: Clinic-Pathological Conference. Problem-based learning is highly effective. A clinical case presentation with deliberation on all aspects is useful for all. The denouement should include research developments and desired research directions. (iv) Heightened professionalism: Progress features promise exciting future. Chemistry of life and disease has been evolving manifold, opening new vistas. Microbiome research results for clinically actionable microbe-host relationships identification are in foresight. Genomic and proteomic approach to human disease is leading to new understanding of pathogenesis for clinical strategies. Systems Biology studies living organisms with their cellular or molecular network components holistically to predict response to perturbations. ‘Systems pathobiology’ is energising avenues for early diagnosis and advancing clinical applications for halting progress for better medical practice. CONCLUSIONS: Teaching CPC for all round understanding will lead to all knowledgeable proficient medical practitioners.