Onward to Better Surgery - the Critical Need for Improved Ex Vivo Testing and Training Methods.

Area of Science:

• Medical Technology
• Surgical Innovation
• Biomedical Engineering

Background:

• Guided surgery offers improved patient outcomes, driving rapid technological advancement.
• Current technologies include radiological navigation, various probes, and optical/electrical tissue properties.
• Combinations of these technologies hold promise for successful interventions with low morbidity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review available ex vivo/in vitro testing formats for guided surgery.
• To analyze the advantages and disadvantages of current testing methods.
• To propose strategies for advancing guided surgery through improved validation.

Main Methods:

• Review of existing literature on ex vivo/in vitro testing platforms for guided surgery.
• Analysis of limitations in current animal models (small and large) for testing guided surgery technologies.
• Discussion of the challenges posed by the increasing number of guided surgery technologies and their combinations.

Main Results:

• Existing ex vivo/in vitro testing formats face challenges in validation and acceptance.
• Animal models present limitations in replicating human anatomy, pathology, and molecular specificity.
• The rapid growth of guided surgery technologies necessitates more efficient and reliable testing solutions.

Conclusions:

• There is a critical need to expand and validate ex vivo/in vitro testing platforms for guided surgery.
• Increased acceptance of these validated methods is essential for regulatory and funding purposes.
• Adoption of robust ex vivo/in vitro testing will accelerate the safe and effective advancement of guided surgery.