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A Sensorised Surgical Glove to Analyze Forces During Neurosurgery
Hugo Layard Horsfall1,2, Carmen Salvadores Fernandez2,3, Biswajoy Bagchi2,3
1Victor Horsley Department of Neurosurgery, National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, London, UK.
Neurosurgery
|February 2, 2023
Summary
A novel sensorized surgical glove accurately measures intraoperative forces, distinguishing expert from novice neurosurgeons. This technology enhances patient safety and provides objective surgical training metrics.
Area of Science:
- Biomedical Engineering
- Neurosurgery
- Surgical Technology
Background:
- Real-time intraoperative force measurement is crucial for surgical safety and training.
- Existing force monitoring methods often involve specialized instruments or designs incompatible with surgical workflows.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop a universal sensorized surgical glove for detecting intraoperative forces.
- The glove is designed for application in any surgical procedure and with any instrument, usable in either hand.
Main Methods:
- A sensorized surgical glove was created and calibrated for forces ranging from 0 to 10 N.
- Laboratory experiments confirmed the glove's ability to detect instrument-tissue forces.
- Expert and novice neurosurgeons performed a validated grape dissection task 20 times each while wearing the glove.
Main Results:
- The sensorized glove reliably determined instrument-tissue forces.
- Expert neurosurgeons applied significantly lower average (2.14 N vs. 7.15 N) and maximum (6.32 N vs. 9.80 N) forces compared to novices.
- The glove's integration into surgical workflow was feasible and did not hinder task performance.
Conclusions:
- A novel, scalable technique for detecting forces during neurosurgery was demonstrated.
- Real-time force data can optimize intraoperative tissue forces, minimize injury risk, and offer objective metrics for surgical training and assessment.
