Extended Reality Applications in Plastic Surgery Residency: Why and Why Not

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Surgical Training
• Extended Reality (XR)

Background:

• Extended Reality (XR) is gaining traction in surgical training, utilizing head-mounted displays (HMDs) for enhanced visualization and communication.
• Assessing the receptiveness of plastic surgeons to XR is crucial for understanding its potential impact on surgical education.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the perceived usefulness and usability of Extended Reality (XR) among plastic surgeons for various applications.
• To compare the receptiveness of attending and resident plastic surgeons towards XR integration in training.

Main Methods:

• Plastic surgeons (attendings and residents) surveyed after viewing XR interventions.
• Survey assessed XR applications for remote consultation, intra-operative education, and pre-operative planning.
• Responses analyzed using descriptive statistics and Fisher's exact test for group differences.

Main Results:

• Attendings perceived XR as more useful for virtual consultations than residents (91% vs 50%).
• Both groups strongly endorsed XR for intra-operative education, showing high willingness to use.
• Residents reported greater usability concerns and anticipated more technical support needs, especially for pre-operative planning.

Conclusions:

• Attending surgeons were more receptive to XR integration than residents, who reported higher cognitive load.
• Optimizing XR applications for value and usability while managing trainee stress is key for effective residency education.
• Residents highlighted the Hawthorne effect and valued improved intra-operative visibility with XR.