Real-Time Needle Force Modeling for VR-Based Renal Biopsy Training with Respiratory Motion Using Direct Clinical Data

Area of Science:

• Medical Simulation
• Biomechanics
• Surgical Training

Background:

• Virtual surgical training requires realistic tool-tissue interaction for effective medical education.
• Current virtual reality (VR) surgical simulators often lack the fidelity of intraoperative data.
• Enhancing haptic feedback is crucial for immersive surgical training.

Purpose of the Study:

• To design a dynamic biomechanics experimental framework for highly immersive haptic sensation during biopsy therapy.
• To introduce periodic extension into dynamic percutaneous force modeling for improved realism.
• To evaluate the clinical effectiveness and fidelity of the proposed haptic rendering solution.

Main Methods:

• Development of a dynamic biomechanics framework incorporating periodic extension for percutaneous force modeling.
• Integration of real-time force rendering for haptic feedback in VR surgical training.
• Clinical evaluation involving 27 urologists (18 novices, 9 professors) at Yunnan First People's Hospital.

Main Results:

• The proposed framework achieved a high fitting degree (AVG: 99.36%) with intraoperative data, surpassing previous algorithms (AVG: 87.83%, 72.07%, 66.70%).
• Demonstrated a universal fitting range across multilayer tissues.
• VR-based training evaluation showed superior subjective and objective performance compared to existing simulators.

Conclusions:

• The dynamic biomechanics framework significantly enhances haptic realism in virtual biopsy procedures.
• The improved fidelity and universal fitting range offer a more effective training solution for surgical procedures.
• Haptically enabled medical simulation systems, tuned for fidelity, provide a more immersive and effective training environment.