Anatomy@Edinburgh

Dr Stephen Maclean

Lecturer in Anatomy

Dr Stephen Maclean

Anatomy Lecturer

  • Anatomy@Edinburgh
  • Edinburgh Medical School: Biomedical Sciences
  • University of Edinburgh

Contact details

Address

Street

Doorway 3
Medical School
Teviot Place
Edinburgh
EH8 9AG

Stephen [he/him] completed his BSc (hons) degree in Forensic Anthropology at the University of Dundee, graduating with First Class Honours in June 2012. Following this, Stephen was awarded a Teaching Scholarship to complete a PhD at the Centre for Anatomy and Human Identification, University of Dundee, under the supervision of Professor Sue Black and Dr Craig Cunningham. His research focussed on the application of medical imaging technologies, including radiography and micro-computed tomography, in the investigation of the early ontogenetic development of the human ischium. He was awarded his PhD in May 2017.

In May 2017, Stephen took up his current post as a Lecturer in Anatomy (Teaching Track) within the Centre for Medicine and Veterinary Medicine at the University of Edinburgh.

While in post, Stephen has taken the lead on developing a new Honours Elective Course, Applied Human Osteology, and is working to develop and integrate digital learning technologies and 3D resources across the Anatomy Teaching Portfolio.

Stephen achieved his Edinburgh Teaching Award in 2019, and was accepted as a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA) shortly after this.

Stephen is also a Certified Forensic Anthropologist with the Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland (RAI), at the FA-III level. He operates under the mentorship of Ms. Gaille MacKinnon. Stephen currently sits on the Forensic Anthropology Committee of the RAI as the FA-III representative.

Stephen can be found on Twitter at @BoneDoctorPhD.

Teaching

Stephen contributes widely to the teaching and assessment of anatomy across a number of programmes and courses, including MBChB, BSc Biomedical Sciences, MSc Human Anatomy and PGdip Anatomical Sciences. This includes all forms of Anatomy, including Gross anatomy, histology, embryology, medical imaging, and neuroanatomy.

Stephen’s is the course organiser for the Y4 BSc (hons) elective course Applied Human Osteology, which examines the human skeleton and its uses in identifying unknown skeletal remains, and Advanced Human Anatomy 1, a Diploma level online learning course as part of the Anatomical Sciences programme. He is also the lead for anatomical content in clinical years teaching, co-ordinating Y4-5 MBChB anatomy teaching.

Stephen’s specialty areas include musculoskeletal anatomy, osteology, and medical imaging teaching. This has culminated in an ongoing partnership with Dr Jeremy Jones (Royal Hospital for Sick Children, Edinburgh) and the online imaging repository Radiopaedia, which has led to the widespread integration of digital imaging to Y1 and Y2 MBChB practical anatomy education.

Research

Stephen’s PhD research is concerned with ontogenetic patterns in human skeletal development. This involves the application of two- and three-dimensional imaging technologies to examine changes in cortical and trabecular bone microarchitecture, with the aim of identifying potential factors which inform early skeletal development and their implications for bone form and health.

Stephen also supervises undergraduate and postgraduate research projects which utilise the skeletal collections held by the University of Edinburgh for the purposes of anatomical education, human identification, and clinical investigations. Some of these projects have included:

  • Investigation of the antilingula of the mandible as a surface feature for oral and maxillofacial surgery
  • The use of craniometric landmarks to create novel sex estimation tools based on a historic skull population
  • The application of 3D structured light scanning in forensic anthropology and anatomy education
  • The analysis of micro-computed CT and radiographic data to study developmental patterns in the developing human pelvis.

Publications

Maclean, S.J., Black, S.M. and Cunningham, C.A. (2014). The developing juvenile ischium: Macro-radiographic insights. Clinical Anatomy 27 (6): 906-914

Maclean, S.J. (2018). Identified Skeletal Collections: The Testing Ground of Anthropology (Book Review). Journal of Anatomy (early access) DOI: 10.1111/joa.12879

Maclean, S.J., Cunningham C.A. and Black, S.M. (2018). S35 Constructive regression in the juvenile human ischium: a qualitative analysis. IN: Solving Clinical Problems with Anatomical Solutions: Winter meeting of the Anatomical Society 2017. Journal of Anatomy 232 (6): 1048

Maclean, S.J., Cunningham C.A. and Black, S.M. (2018). P42 Constructive regression in the juvenile human ischium: a quantitative analysis. IN: Solving Clinical Problems with Anatomical Solutions: Winter meeting of the Anatomical Society 2017. Journal of Anatomy 232 (6): 1063

Maclean, S.J., O’Malley, A.S., Cunningham, C.A. and Black, S.M. (2015). Extensive bone remodeling in the Juvenile Girdles: A new phase of development In: Abstracts presented at the Summer Meeting of the British Association of Clinical Anatomists on 3rd July 2014 at the Plymouth Univeristy, Peninsula Schools of Medicine and Dentistry, Portland Square Building, Plymouth, United Kingdom. Clinical Anatomy 28 (3): 416

Maclean, S.J., Cunningham, C.A., Black, S.M. (2014). The macro-radiographic development of the juvenile ischium In: Abstracts presented at the Winter Meeting of the British Association of Clinical Anatomists on 18th December 2013 at the Stopford Building, University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom. Clinical Anatomy 27 (8): 1342

Professional Membership

  • Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA)
  • Fellow of the Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland (RAI)
  • Early Career Member of the Anatomical Society
  • Member of the British Association of Biological Anthropology and Osteoarchaeology
  • Member of the British Association of Human Identification (BAHID)
  • Member of the British Association of Forensic Anthropologists (BAFA)