Related Experiment Video
Updated: Nov 15, 2025
06:28
E-Patient Counseling Trial E-PACO: Computer Based Education versus Nurse Counseling for Patients to Prepare for Colonoscopy
Published on: August 1, 2019
8.6K
Kobra Surgery Simulator-A Possibility to Improve Digital Teaching? A Case-Control Study
Mayte Buchbender1, Mathias Maser1, Friedrich W Neukam1
1Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Glückstraße 11, 91054 Erlangen, Germany.
Summary
The Kobra oral surgery simulator offers an additional training method for dental students, complementing traditional plastic models. While students showed less precision than dentists, the simulation provides benefits for both students and faculty.
Area of Science:
- Oral Surgery
- Dental Education Technology
- Surgical Simulation
Background:
- Computer-aided simulations are valuable in university teaching but underutilized in dental surgery.
- The Kobra oral surgery simulator was developed to address this gap in dental education.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the effectiveness of the Kobra simulator in training dental students and faculty.
- To compare simulation-based training with conventional methods using plastic models.
Main Methods:
- Third-year and fourth-year dental students, along with faculty dentists, were trained on the Kobra simulator.
- Participants performed simulated procedures (apicoectomy, wisdom tooth removal) and outcomes were assessed.
- Subjective (skills improvement, comparison) and objective (tissue removal) parameters were measured via questionnaires.
Main Results:
- Conventional training with plastic models was still slightly favored over Kobra simulation, though not significantly.
- Students demonstrated less precise surgical performance compared to dentists using the simulator, also not significantly different.
- Both students and faculty found the Kobra simulation beneficial.
Conclusions:
- The Kobra simulator can serve as a valuable supplementary tool to conventional dental surgery training.
- Simulation-based learning offers potential benefits for enhancing practical skills in dental education.
- Further integration of simulation technology is recommended for dental surgical training.
