JoinAll Case Studies
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Suggested Keywords, to help with your search (besides selecting subjects): clicker cases, directed cases, interrupted cases, discussion cases, intimate debate cases. As a reminder, all cases may be adjusted to meet the needs of your student level. See our case use guidelines.
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By Antoinette Miller
This series of mini cases focuses on the cortical areas associated with vision and visual perception. Each case depicts a breakdown in visual perception that may be traced to damage in an area or areas of the visual system and is based upon an actual...
Take Two and Call Me in the Morning
By Peggy Brickman
In this “clicker case,” students read about a college student who becomes sick. As they set out to identify the cause of the illness, students learn about the differences between viruses, prokaryotes, and eukaryotes in order to decide which organ...
By Janna R. McLean
In this interrupted case study, two students explore evidence suggesting that environmental estrogens leach out of some plastic containers and that these chemicals have a negative impact on the development of mammals. Students analyze data, consider ...
Cross-Dressing or Crossing-Over?
By Maureen Knabb, Joan Sharp
In this “clicker case,” students learn about sex determination, meiosis, and chromosomal “crossing over” through the story of Santhi Soundararajan, an athlete from Kathakkurichi, India, who was stripped of a medal at the 2006 Asian Games afte...
By Laura Y. Lorentzen, Youssef Kousa
This case study follows a woman faced with a series of difficult medical decisions. Students apply systems-level physiology as they explore a pregnancy with medical complications and discuss situations involving life-changing decisions prompted by mo...
Mini Cases in Movement Disorders
By Antoinette Miller
This collection of six short cases focuses on brain areas and neurotransmitters involved in the control of movement. Students are divided into working groups and given one or more of the case descriptions. Each scenario depicts a breakdown in the mot...
By Karen A. Pinco
This case study was developed to complement the study of the immune system and to emphasize the crosstalk that occurs at the cellular level between B and T cells for proper immune system function. In reading the story of a young couple trying to unde...
By Michèle I. Shuster, Karen Peterson
This case study takes a combined directed and discussion approach to explore risk factors for breast cancer. After a preparatory reading assignment, students assess various medical histories derived from actual women with breast cancer and rank their...
By Philip J. Stephens
This interrupted case study in cardiovascular physiology focuses on Suzie, a determined young woman who is training hard for the upcoming figure skating season. But family dynamics combined with high aspirations of competing in the Olympic Games have...
A Case of X-linked Agammaglobulinemia
By David F. Dean (rr)
Though a normal, full-term baby at birth, starting at about 10 months of age “Billy DeWitt” has suffered a series of infections, including sinusitis, otitis media, and pneumonia. Students read a brief clinical history of the patient and a descrip...
By David F. Dean (rr)
Seven-year-old “Jason Hornbuckle” has been complaining for the past 12 hours of pain when he swallows. He also has a headache and has vomited twice. His mother decides to take him to the pediatrician. Students read a brief clini...
A Case of Iron Deficiency Anemia
By David F. Dean (rr)
“Dolores Welborn,” a 28-year-old attorney, is pregnant with her first child. Lately she has been tiring easily and is often short of breath. She has also had periods of light-headedness, cramping in her legs, and a sore tongue. Students read a br...
By David F. Dean (rr)
“Carolyn Jones” is a 40-year-old professor of economics. The past week she has felt tried and weak. The past few days she has noticed small, red dots on her skin and gums. Even more upsetting, she cut herself while making dinner and the wou...
By Brent J.F. Hill
In this problem-based learning case, students read about a 41-year-old woman who is suffering from recurring headaches. Working in small groups, the students analyze a variety of information and then formulate a diagnosis. This case study was develop...
Why Does Grandpa Ignore Grandma?
By Benjamin F. Timson, Scott D. Zimmerman
Carla, a first semester graduate student in audiology, has noticed that her grandfather appears to be having trouble hearing what her grandmother says. Other people in the family can’ help but notice it too as it becomes a source of increasing aggr...
By Eric Ribbens
This case study is designed to teach introductory biology majors about the role of the pituitary in controlling hormones. It could easily be applied or modified to fit a variety of other courses, including a non-majors introductory biology course or ...
By David F. Dean (rr)
“Jason Hendrix,” a 21-year-old student majoring in economics, is injured in a serious motorcycle accident while on spring break in Florida. Students read the short case scenario, which provides a brief clinical history of the patient and a ...
A Case of Cerebrovascular Accident
By David F. Dean (rr)
"Samuel Dexter" is 52 years old, overweight, and a heavy smoker. He wakes one morning with weakness on his right side. When he attempts to walk to the bathroom, he stumbles and then falls. His wife, who suspects he has suffered a stroke, calls ...
A Case of Neurocardiogenic Syncope
By David F. Dean (rr)
“Allison Jacobson” is a 19-year-old sophomore majoring in pre-med. The past few weeks she has been studying for finals. She feels tired, even though she knows she has been getting enough sleep at night. She also has frequent headaches, and severa...
By Wendy Heck-Grillo, Andrea Novicki, Brian Rybarczyk
Since caffeine is a widely used substance, especially by college age students, this case on the effects of caffeine on the human body serves as a real-world connection to many students’ lives. The case is divided into sections covering background i...
By Mary Rose Grant
Frank and Joe are 24-year-old fraternal twins who share similar interests, including cycling. The brothers decide to attempt their first long-distance bicycling trip, retracing the journey of early American explorers Lewis and Clark to the Northwest....
A Friend in Need is a Friend Indeed
By William H. Cliff, Ann W. Wright
This directed case study was designed to help students strengthen their understanding of the transport of oxygen in the blood through an analysis of the pathophysiology of a common, real-world problem, namely, carbon monoxide poisoning. The case was ...
By Merle K. Heidemann (rr), Gerald Urquhart
This case study is designed to teach students at various levels about large biomolecules, nutrition, and product analysis. Students conduct a biochemical analysis of several popular energy drinks on the market, which many students purchase at fairly ...
By Allison Russo, Morgan Falk, Philip J. Stephens
Annie is on a college swimming scholarship. Recently she has been feeling tired and her times have been getting slower. She has also noticed that her vision is often blurred. Concerned, she goes to see her doctor over the mid-term break and is referr...
By Stephanie DeMarco, Caitlyn Woods, Philip J. Stephens
In this interrupted case study, students follow the story of Mr. Gower, who must have a root canal. All goes well at the dentist's, but that night Mr. Gower feels tired and light headed. In the morning, his jaw is stiff and he has no appetite. Over t...
By Jennifer Bolognese, Misti Coronel, Anita Intorre, Philip J. Stephens
Phyllis Jackson has fainted on the soccer field. She thinks she is just dehydrated, but her husband is worried. He has noticed that she has been having difficulty concentrating at work and is forgetful at times at home. At his suggestion, Phyllis goe...
It Was a Hot August Afternoon...
By Anthony C. Steyermark
A farmer becomes concerned after discovering a number of dead animals on his small farm, including some ducks, several deer, and a coyote, all within a single week. Fearing that someone might be poisoning his land, he calls in a veterinary pathologis...
By Brent J.F. Hill
In this problem-based learning case, a couple who has adopted a three-year-old toddler is concerned about the child’s health, in particular the fact that the boy wheezes when he breathes. Students work in groups to analyze a variety of information ...
By Herbert House (rr)
Roma and Clint Underhill are relaxing after a stressful day in their hot tub with some wine. But tragedy strikes, and the next morning their lifeless bodies are found in the water by their housekeeper. The paramedics who respond to her frantic 911 ca...
By Philip J. Stephens
After undergoing a fertility procedure, a 37-year-old woman and her husband are expecting twins. The delivery goes smoothly, but it soon becomes apparent that, while the baby boy appears normal, the baby girl has a heart problem and is cyanotic. In t...
A Case of Seasonal Affective Disorder
By David F. Dean (rr)
“Melanie Johnson” is a 32-year-old accountant who has moved to Green Bay, Wisconsin, from her hometown of Sarasota, Florida. For the first time in her life, she has been experiencing periods of depression, lethargy, and excessive sleeping. ...
By David F. Dean (rr)
“Rollie Hendrix,” a 35-year-old husband and father of three children, has been experiencing headaches and palpitations of increasing frequency and severity over the past six months. In addition, he has had periods of intense anxiety and panic att...
By David F. Dean (rr)
“Amanda Richards,” a 20-year-old junior in college, is majoring in biology and hopes to be a pediatrician one day. For about a month, she has been waking up frequently at night to go to the bathroom. Most recently, she has noticed that she needs ...
By Philip J. Stephens
In this interrupted case study, a middle-aged man is having his wisdom teeth surgically removed. He decides to have a general anesthetic, but is unaware of the reaction he will have to halothane. His skeletal muscles go rigid and his body temperature...
By Julia Omarzu
This case study involves a couple deciding whether or not their son should undergo brain surgery to treat a severe seizure disorder. In examining this dilemma, students apply knowledge of brain anatomy and function. They also learn about brain scanni...
By Angela Wisniewski, Thuy N. Nguyen, David Newberger
“Ed Cramer” is a 47-year-old mechanical engineer who is being treated for venous thromboembolism. He was 45 when he first developed a blood clot in the lower part of his left leg and had to be hospitalized for five days. A year later, he develope...
By Philip J. Stephens
The high school ice hockey team is playing the last of three games in one day. The game gets rough and Rick, the star player, is slammed against the boards. Injured, he has to be escorted from the ice. This interrupted case study follows Ricks ...
By Kari A. Mergenhagen
The parents of a six-week-old baby girl know there is something seriously wrong with their child, but it takes a number of frustrating visits to the pediatrician before they finally get a correct diagnosis. Once they do, the parents must decide wheth...
By Dayton J. Ford
A fight in a college town bar between the football player of one team and a drunken fan of a rival team results in a serious spinal cord injury. Students working in groups read the case and research the questions associated with it, which they then d...
Bad Fish: General Biology Edition
By James A. Hewlett
In this version, developed for a course in general biology, the protagonist of the case, Dr. Westwood, survives an accidental poisoning-not once, but twice. Students read about each incident, applying what they learn in each part of the case to the l...