Brain activation measurement for motion gain decision of surgical endoscope manipulation

Abstract

Background: Robotic surgery improves minimally invasive interventions. However, it is challenging to determine the best gain settings for control of the endoscope.Providing the surgeon with the ability to manipulate the endoscope at an appropriate speed will likely improve the surgery by reducing the surgeon's stress. In this study, we validated the feasibility of a gain-tuning method in which the operator's brain activity is measured and used to evaluate stress levels. Methods:We developed an endoscope-manipulation simulator and used functional near-infrared spectroscopy to measure the prefrontal cortical activity, while participants controlled the simulator at different gain values. Results:The brain activation levels in the prefrontal cortex exhibited significant differences under different viewpoint motion gain conditions. Conclusions:The stress-related brain activity was significantly reduced at specific gains, indicating that the brain activity evaluation would be useful to determine the parameters related to the operator's feelings.

Study of the Acute Stress Effects on Decision Making Using Electroencephalography and Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy: A Systematic Review

“…These studies highlight how stress can impair cognitive control, increase the risk of misperception, and alter safety behaviors, underscoring the critical importance of stress management and decisionmaking training in such contexts. Innovative neurophysiological measures have been proposed for real-time stress monitoring in occupational settings, which offer potential solutions to enhance safety and performance [69]. Lightweight EEG and fNIRS were suggested as tools for real-time, out-of-thelab stress assessment.…”

“…These were likely influenced by social variables and effects that were less precise and likely caused by low-level factors, such as priming. In [69], the authors created a surgical endoscope simulator using Visual Studio C++ (Microsoft, Redmond, WA, USA) and OpenGL (Khronos Group, Beaverton, WA, USA). A single-port surgery robotic endoscope can be maneuvered using the simulator's manipulators, targets, and viewpoints.…”