Toward effective pediatric minimally invasive surgical simulation

Simulation is increasingly being recognized as an important tool in the training and evaluation of surgeons. Currently, there is no simulator that is specific to pediatric minimally invasive surgery (MIS). A fundamental technical difference between adult and pediatric MIS is the degree of motion scaling. Smaller instruments and areas of dissection under greater optical magnification require finer, more precise hand movements. We hypothesized that this can be used to detect differences in skills proficiency between pediatric and general surgeons.

We programmed a virtual reality simulation of intracorporeal suturing with modes that used motion scaling to mimic conditions of either adult or pediatric MIS. The participants consisted of pediatric and general surgeons who wore motion-sensing gloves. Metrics included time elapsed, penetration errors, tool movement smoothness, hand movement smoothness, and gesture level proficiency.

For all measures, pediatric surgeons demonstrated superior proficiency on exercises conducted in pediatric conditions (P < .05). Performance in adult conditions was similar between the 2 groups.

Pediatric surgeons possess unique skills compared with general surgeons that relate to the technical challenges they routinely face, reinforcing the need for a surgical simulator specific to pediatric MIS. This validates our simulator and the manipulation of motion scaling as a useful training tool.