Head-to-Head Comparison of Three Virtual-Reality Robotic Surgery Simulators

Area of Science:

• Medical Simulation
• Robotic Surgery Training
• Surgical Skills Assessment

Background:

• Limited comparative data exists for commercially available virtual-reality robotic surgery simulators.
• Assessing the validity, cost, and availability of these simulators is crucial for training programs.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the face and content validity of three robotic surgery simulators: dV-Trainer (dVT), da Vinci Skills Simulator (dVSS), and RobotiX Mentor (RM).
• To evaluate the pricing and availability of these virtual-reality robotic simulators.

Main Methods:

• Fifteen participants, primarily surgical trainees, completed tasks on the dVT, dVSS, and RM simulators.
• Validated questionnaires assessed face and content validity, alongside demographic data.
• Statistical analysis, including ANOVA, was performed on the collected validity scores.

Main Results:

• The dVSS demonstrated significantly higher face validity compared to the dVT (P = .001).
• Content validity showed a significant difference favoring the dVSS over the dVT (P = .021) and a trend between RM and dVT (P = .092).
• All simulators exhibited evidence of face and content validity.

Conclusions:

• The da Vinci Skills Simulator (dVSS) achieved higher face and content validity scores and is the least expensive option.
• Despite its cost-effectiveness, the dVSS faces availability issues due to intra-operative use.
• The dV-Trainer (dVT) and RobotiX Mentor (RM) offer comparable validity, are slightly more expensive, but are readily available for training.