Medical illustration is as old as medicine itself. From Hippocrates' early medical diagrams, Leonardo DaVinci's and Andreas Vesalius' research and drawings, to Max Brodel's and Frank Netter's modern medical illustrations, medical illustration has a rich history. Medical and biological illustration is the fusion of science with graphic communication. Medical and biological Illustrators are highly trained professional artists who choose medicine and other scientific procedures, theories, or artifacts as their subject matter.

Medical illustrators use a variety of media and tools, to tell a complex story. They can use digital or traditional media and tools to create extremely realistic, schematic, abstract, or conceptual images. These images are used for advertising, editorial, institutional, instructional, or for academic publications and presentations, which can all be displayed in print, digitally, or in an interactive multimedia program. Medical illustrators in the United States have a master's degree from one of the five accredited graduate programs in medical illustration. These programs are accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Educational Programs (CAAHEP) and the Association of Medical Illustrators (AMI). A sixth program in Toronto, Ont. is recognized as meeting all accreditation standards by the CAAHEP.

Universities, authors, commercial medical corporations, and many other patrons of medical art need scientifically accurate medical communication materials. Many medical images that are created by non-medical illustrators or untrained "medical illustrators" contain anatomical, pathological, or physiological errors, which can discredit the client's presentation or publication. Medical illustrators are highly trained in the medical and biological science field. While enrolled in an accredited graduate program, medical illustrators take many courses with medical students including Gross Anatomy (including dissection of a human cadaver), Cell Biology, Histology, and Embryology, as well as many other graduate level science courses. Some graduate programs offer special courses that give each school a unique opportunity. Part of the Medical College of Georgia's coursework is experimental animal surgery. This allows students to perform laproscopic and open surgical procedures on an animal, and get hands-on experience in an operating room. This course proceeds a long summer of surgical procedure observation, sketching, and illustration.

Corl Medical Media is a full service medical illustration studio based in Baltimore, Maryland. We are experienced illustrators and animators of anatomical, surgical, pathological, and editorial content for medical books, journals, multimedia programs, and web based projects. Our goal is to produce accurate, dynamic, and aesthetically pleasing medical media.

Our medical illustrations, media, and articles have been published worldwide in medical textbooks, educational multimedia material, web based educational and commercial sites, and peer reviewed medical journals. Frank Corl is a graduate of the Medical College of Georgia's Graduate Program in Medical Illustration, one of six accredited medical illustration programs in the world. Corl Medical Media have formed a network of independent software developers, designers, and illustrators to assist with your project needs. Frank Corl is the recipient of numerous medical illustration and academic research awards and is also employed at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine Advanced Medical Imaging Laboratory. Frank has won several academic research awards for work and co-direction of www.ctisus.com. CTisus is an on-line educational resource devoted to computed tomography and three dimensional imaging for radiologic professionals. Frank is also a professional member of the Association of Medical Illustrators (AMI).

We believe that or skills with traditional media, computer media, and web development, as well as our visual problem solving abilities can make a positive contribution to your company's medical communication projects.