Infographics with clinical summaries improve medical student performance: A within-subject intervention study with gender-based analysis

Abstract

Introduction This study aimed to evaluate the impact of infographics and social media threads (SMT) on academic per- formance in the Musculoskeletal Medical and Surgical Pathology (MMSP) course. Additionally, gender differences in the effectiveness of these tools were examined. Methods A within-subject educational intervention study was conducted over three academic years, involving 459 fifth- year medical students. Infographics and SMT were exclusively provided for the rheumatology section of the MMSP course, while no additional tools were offered for the traumatology section, serving as a control. Students completed a final exam comprising multiple-choice questions (MCQs) for both sections. Survey data were collected to assess tool usage and percep- tions (completed by 84.1%). Statistical analysis included Mann–Whitney U, Kruskal–Wallis, and Jonckheere-Terpstra tests with Z-score standardization. Results The use of infographics significantly improved standardized scores in rheumatology MCQs (p = 0.035), particularly among male students (p = 0.046), while no impact was observed for traumatology section. SMT showed limited associa- tion with improved performance. Surveys indicated that 86% of students found infographics helpful for studying, and 85% would recommend them. In contrast, SMT received lower ratings, with 44% of students finding them useful for studying. Conclusions Infographics effectively enhanced academic performance, with gender-specific variations in impact. In contrast, SMT had limited influence. These findings suggest that infographics are effective supplementary tools in medical education, especially when designed to align with diverse learning preferences. Further exploration of SMT’s potential and development of gender-inclusive teaching strategies is warranted.