Presented By: Joe Blumer, Medical University of South Carolina
Co-Authors: Christopher Campbell, Medical University of South Carolina, College of Medicine
Michele Knoll Watson, Medical University of South Carolina, College of Medicine
Casey O'Neill, Medical University of South Carolina
Pranav Patel, Medical University of South Carolina, College of Medicine
Carter Smith, Medical University of South Carolina, College of Medicine

Purpose 
Anki is a widely used retrieval practice and spaced repetition study tool among medical students. Previous studies have reported that up to 70% of medical students use Anki to aid in their medical school studies. The aim of this study is to investigate the utilization of the Anki flashcard application as a learning tool among medical students and its correlation with academic performance. This study explores the subtleties of Anki usage, including the frequency of reviews, types of cards used, learning strategies employed, and the impact on long-term knowledge retention as an initial approach to explore its impact on preclerkship medical education.   

Methods 
An anonymous survey was used to collect information on student demographics, self-reported study habits, Anki usage, self-reported levels of depression, burnout, and test anxiety. Self-reported dependent variables such as MCAT scores were also collected. Dependent variables were compared to the independent variables of pre-clerkship exam scores, quartile ranking, Step 1 pass rate, and scores on the NBME Comprehensive Basic Science Exam and Comprehensive Basic Science Self-Assessments for USMLE Step 1. Data analysis was conducted to determine the correlation between the dependent and independent variables. 

Results
Our data indicate that: 1) Anki use alone is not significantly associated with increased academic performance in the preclerkship medical school curriculum; 2) prior use of Anki before medical school is not associated with subsequent medical school performance; and 3) specific patterns of Anki usage, such as increased number of cards reviewed per day and a greater percentage of self-made cards, predicted increased medical school academic performance. 

Conclusions 
Contrary to previous reports, this study does not conclusively establish Anki use alone as markedly superior to other study methods within the medical school curriculum but does demonstrate that further analysis of how Anki is used may reveal significant improvement in academic performance.