Novel Low-Cost, Low-Fidelity Hemorrhoidectomy Task Trainers

Area of Science:

• Surgical Education
• Medical Simulation
• Anorectal Surgery Training

Background:

• Junior surgical residents often lack adequate preparation for anorectal procedures.
• Development of cost-effective training tools is crucial for surgical skill acquisition.
• Hemorrhoidectomy requires proficiency in dissection, knot-tying, and suturing within confined spaces.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and evaluate low-cost task trainers for hemorrhoidectomy simulation.
• To compare the performance of surgical experts and novices using these trainers.
• To assess the perceived utility and achievability of the task trainers for skill improvement.

Main Methods:

• Three low-fidelity task trainers were created to simulate key hemorrhoidectomy skills.
• Participants (experts and novices) performed simulated dissection, knot-tying, and suturing tasks.
• Performance metrics included task completion time, error rates, and subjective evaluations.

Main Results:

• Experts demonstrated significantly faster knot-tying and suturing times compared to novices.
• Experts required fewer attempts for knot-tying.
• No significant differences were found in dissection speed or other error types.
• All participants rated the tasks as achievable and useful for skill development.

Conclusions:

• Low-cost, low-fidelity hemorrhoidectomy task trainers can effectively distinguish between expert and novice surgical skills.
• These simulation models offer a practical and useful training opportunity for general surgery residents.
• The trainers show potential for improving surgical competency in anorectal procedures.