• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

SAGES

Reimagining surgical care for a healthier world

  • Home
    • COVID-19 Annoucements
    • Search
    • SAGES Home
    • SAGES Foundation Home
  • About
    • Who is SAGES?
    • SAGES Mission Statement
    • Strategic Plan, 2020-2023
    • Committees
      • Request to Join a SAGES Committee
      • SAGES Board of Governors
      • Officers and Representatives of the Society
      • Committee Chairs and Co-Chairs
      • Full Committee Rosters
      • SAGES Past Presidents
    • Donate to the SAGES Foundation
    • Awards
      • George Berci Award
      • Pioneer in Surgical Endoscopy
      • Excellence In Clinical Care
      • International Ambassador
      • IRCAD Visiting Fellowship
      • Social Justice and Health Equity
      • Excellence in Community Surgery
      • Distinguished Service
      • Early Career Researcher
      • Researcher in Training
      • Jeff Ponsky Master Educator
      • Excellence in Medical Leadership
      • Barbara Berci Memorial Award
      • Brandeis Scholarship
      • Advocacy Summit
      • RAFT Annual Meeting Abstract Contest and Awards
  • Meetings
    • 2022 NBT Innovation Weekend
    • SAGES Annual Meeting
      • 2023 Scientific Session Call For Abstracts
      • 2023 Emerging Technology Call For Abstracts
    • SAGES 2021 Annual Meeting
    • CME Claim Form
    • Industry
      • Advertising Opportunities
      • Exhibit Opportunities
      • Sponsorship Opportunities
    • Future Meetings
    • Past Meetings
      • SAGES 2021
      • SAGES 2020
      • SAGES 2019
      • SAGES 2018
    • Related Meetings Calendar
  • Join SAGES!
    • Membership Benefits
    • Membership Applications
      • Active Membership
      • Affiliate Membership
      • Associate Active Membership
      • Candidate Membership
      • International Membership
      • Medical Student Membership
    • Member News
      • Member Spotlight
      • Give the Gift of SAGES Membership
  • Patients
    • Healthy Sooner – Patient Information for Minimally Invasive Surgery
    • Patient Information Brochures
    • Choosing Wisely – An Initiative of the ABIM Foundation
    • All in the Recovery: Colorectal Cancer Alliance
    • Find a SAGES Member
  • Publications
    • SAGES Stories Podcast
    • SAGES Clinical / Practice / Training Guidelines, Statements, and Standards of Practice
    • Patient Information Brochures
    • TAVAC – Technology and Value Assessments
    • Surgical Endoscopy and Other Journal Information
    • SAGES Manuals
    • SCOPE – The SAGES Newsletter
    • COVID-19 Annoucements
    • Troubleshooting Guides
  • Education
    • OpiVoid.org
    • SAGES.TV Video Library
    • Safe Cholecystectomy Program
      • Safe Cholecystectomy Didactic Modules
    • Masters Program
      • SAGES Facebook Program Collaboratives
      • Acute Care Surgery
      • Bariatric
      • Biliary
      • Colorectal
      • Flexible Endoscopy (upper or lower)
      • Foregut
      • Hernia
      • Robotics
    • Educational Opportunities
    • HPB/Solid Organ Program
    • Courses for Residents
      • Advanced Courses
      • Basic Courses
    • Video Based Assessments (VBA)
    • Robotics Fellows Course
    • MIS Fellows Course
    • Facebook Livestreams
    • Free Webinars For Residents
    • SMART Enhanced Recovery Program
    • SAGES OR SAFETY Video
    • SAGES at Cine-Med
      • SAGES Top 21 MIS Procedures
      • SAGES Pearls
      • SAGES Flexible Endoscopy 101
      • SAGES Tips & Tricks of the Top 21
  • Opportunities
    • SAGES Fellowship Certification for Advanced GI MIS and Comprehensive Flexible Endoscopy
    • Foregut Fellowship Certification
    • SAGES Research Opportunities
    • Fundamentals of Laparoscopic Surgery
    • Fundamentals of Endoscopic Surgery
    • Fundamental Use of Surgical Energy
    • Job Board
    • SAGES Go Global: Global Affairs and Humanitarian Efforts
  • Search
    • Search All SAGES Content
    • Search SAGES Guidelines
    • Search the Video Library
    • Search the Image Library
    • Search the Abstracts Archive
  • Store
    • SAGES Logo Products
    • “Unofficial” Logo Products
  • Log In

Completion of a Novel Virtual Reality-Based Suturing Curriculum Improves Laparoscopic Intracorporeal Knot Tying Skills in Novices

Shohan Shetty, MD, Lucian Panait, MD, Robert L Bell, MD, Kurt E Roberts, MD, Andrew J Duffy, MD. Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, Saint Mary’s Hospital, Waterbury, CT

Introduction:
Training residents in advanced surgical skills is now possible, and even required, outside of the operating room. However, work-hour limits, increased patient volume, and evolving requirements for objective proficiency mandate efficient and effective training protocols. Virtual reality (VR) surgical simulation may be a useful tool to these ends, but requires thoughtful implementation.
We developed and instituted a laparoscopic intracorporeal suturing curriculum on the LapSim 2010 VR simulator platform (Surgical Science, Göteborg, Sweden). Laparoscopic suturing is an essential, advanced skill for all minimally invasive surgeons. Proficiency in laparoscopic suturing, including intracorporeal knot tying, is required for Fundamentals of Laparoscopic Surgery (FLS) certification which must be completed by all surgeons prior to the American Board of Surgery examination.
We hypothesize that successful completion of our VR suturing curriculum by novices is an effective tool to help develop laparoscopic intracorporeal knot tying skills.

Methods:
We designed a novel laparoscopic virtual reality, proficiency-based curriculum that consists of five practice modules and one examination module. The skill modules include lifting and grasping, needle orientation, suturing through a target, and intracorporeal surgeon’s and square knot formation. The study subjects can repeat the practice modules as many times as necessary to reach the required proficiency for each skill. Successful completion of all practice modules enables access to the examination module. Failure to complete the examination module after six attempts results in failure of the curriculum; trainees must return to and repeat each practice module to proficiency in order to retake the exam.
Our study subjects underwent FLS suturing instruction and baseline testing prior to training exclusively on the VR curriculum. The baseline score is the average of two repetitions of the FLS intracorporeal suturing skill test. The FLS skills test was repeated after successful completion of the VR curriculum and exam. The average baseline FLS scores are compared with average post-training scores and performance data are analyzed for statistical significance with Student’s t-test.

Results:
Six medical students and five junior residents successfully completed the virtual reality laparoscopic curriculum and the pre- and post-training FLS skills test. Mean baseline FLS intracorporeal suturing scores were 32±38 prior to the VR curriculum; post-curriculum scores were 77±15 (p<0.05). Improvement in suturing skills was noted in all trainees. In the VR curriculum, the lifting and grasping and square knot tying modules were the most challenging. The average number of repetitions required to complete the lifting and grasping module was 48 (11-101). On average, 20 (12-44) repetitions were required for the square knot tying module. Comparing the number of repetitions required for medical students versus residents for the lifting and grasping module: the average was 70±23 and 22±9 (p<0.05), respectively.

Conclusions:
Successful completion of our virtual reality-based suturing curriculum improves intracorporeal knot tying skills in novice trainees. An efficient and focused VR skills training curriculum can help novice students and residents develop proficiency in critical surgical skills. Self directed skill development in our suturing curriculum provides each level of trainee the required level of practice to develop advanced suturing skills


Session: Poster
Program Number: P197
View Poster

183

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • WhatsApp
  • Reddit

Related

« Return to SAGES 2011 abstract archive

Our Mission

Innovate, educate and collaborate to improve patient care.

Recently, on SAGES…

Surgery is Safer with Vaccination 1

Addressing Religious Concerns About COVID-19 Vaccine

This may be a difficult subject matter for you and your patient to talk about.  Be assured, all major organized religious groups encourage and recommend the COVID-19 vaccine. Listed below are references and websites you can direct your patient towards to help them make an informed decision with regards to their religious concerns against the […]

SAGES Statement on AAPI Violence

The Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons (SAGES) stands in solidarity with the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community. In the summer of 2020, SAGES released a statement condemning the violence, racism, and hatred toward the Black community in the wake of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor’s murders. It is with great sorrow […]

Free SAGES Webinar: Lessons from COVID on Living and Thriving as Surgeons

SAGES recognizes that the COVID-19 pandemic has had a big impact on surgical practice and in surgeon wellness. SAGES’ Reimagining the Practice of Surgery Taskforce will present “Finding the Opportunities: Lessons from COVID and How We Live and Thrive as Surgeons”  to look at ways in which innovative leadership at various levels may help transform […]

Contact SAGES

Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons
11300 W. Olympic Blvd Suite 600
Los Angeles, CA 90064 USA
[email protected]
Tel: (310) 437-0544

Find Us Around the Web!

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Important Links

SAGES 2022 Meeting Information

Healthy Sooner: Patient Information

SAGES Guidelines, Statements, & Standards of Practice

SAGES Manuals

 

  • taTME Study Info
  • Foundation
  • SAGES.TV
  • MyCME
  • Educational Activities

Copyright © 2022 Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons