Virtual Reality in Surgical Arthroscopic Training

Abstract

Arthroscopy has become an irreplaceable method in diagnostics. The arthroscope, with optics and light source, and the exploratory probe are inserted into the knee joint through two small incisions underneath the patella. Currently, the skills required for arthroscopy are taught through hands-on clinical experience. Therefore, the Fraunhofer-Institut h e r Graphische Datenverarbeitung in Darmstadt, in cooperation with the Berufsgenossenschafiche Unfallklinik Frankfurt am Main, developed a highly interactive medical training system for arthroscopy through computer graphics and virtual reality (VR) techniques. Two main issues are addressed: the three-dimensional (3-D) reconstruction process and the 3-D interaction. The god of the reconstruction process is to obtain a realistic representation of the knee joint derived from a magnetic resonance image sequence suitable for computer simulation. Moreover, the 3-D interaction of the training system must simulate real arthroscopy, providing an intuitive handling of the instruments. J h u g e Guid S w g 2:288-294 (2995) 91996 Wdey-Liss, Inc.

Eficácia do aprendizado da videoartroscopia em modelos sintéticos

“…There are also simulators that use virtual reality, in which the physician plans procedures using virtual human bodies, and human anatomy is studied threedimensionally and interactively. However, all of these have a high cost of use (19)(20)(21)(22) , thus limiting the accessibility of this training method.…”

“…The sparseness of specific literature for the purposes of professional education and training creates difficulty in the training process for this very specific field (2) . Many methods are used for surgical training, and these may include using cadavers (15) , animals (16,17) and/ or synthetic models (15) , as well as training using virtual software (18)(19)(20)(21)(22) . The methods for learning to perform videoarthroscopy involve high costs, because high-technology equipment needs to be used, which is generally imported: the monitor, camera, light source and optics.…”

The emergence of e-health: using virtual reality and the internet for providing advanced healthcare services

“…Recently, some research projects have begun to test the feasibility of using VEs in medicine and E-health [19]. Applications of this technology are being developed for health care in the following areas: surgical procedures (remote surgery or telepresence [30][31][32], augmented or enhanced surgery [33][34], and planning and simulation procedures before surgery [35][36]); medical therapy [37][38][39][40][41][42][43][44][45]; neuro-psychology [46][47][48][49][50][51][52]; preventive medicine and patient education [Hoffman, 1995 #264; [53]]; medical education and training [54][55]; visualization of massive medical databases [56]; and skill enhancement and rehabilitation [57][58][59].…”

VREPAR Projects: The Use of Virtual Environments in Psycho-Neuro-Physiological Assessment and Rehabilitation

“…This approach made it possible to use the psycho-physiological effects provoked by the virtual experience for therapeutical purposes.34-37 The developed module was tested in two different studies on nonclinical subjects:38 a first uncontrolled study on 72 male and female subjects35 and a second controlled study on 48 female subjects.37 The results of both studies showed that even a short-term application of the developed VE was able to modify the body experience disturbances of the subjects tested.38 VREPAR 2 Starting from the results described in the previous paragraph, the VREPAR 2 project is now testing the eating disorders (bulimia, anorexia, and obesity) module using clinical subjects. In particular, the project is trying to integrate the VR approach within the experimental-cognitive therapy (ECT), a relatively short-term, integrated, patient oriented approach that focuses on individual discovery.39 The treatment lasts approximately [9][10][11][12] weeks and it is administered by therapists having a cognitive-behavioral orientation who work in conjunction with a clinical psychologist as far as the pharmacological component is concerned.…”