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OpenTrials
Completed

NCT Number: NCT03758586

Spatial Skill Training for Robot-assisted Surgery

Surgical residents from a single tertiary medical center were divided into 2 groups. All residents performed 2 tasks on a Da Vinci robotic simulator system after which they were either given a real training session in spatial skills (study group) or shown a short presentation regarding robotic surgery. After training/watching the presentation, they repeated the for mentioned tasks on the robotic simulator. Improvement in surgeon performance, especially regarding tissue damage was documented.

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Key information

Conditions

Spatial Learning Behavior Spatial Behavior

Age range

25 year–40 year

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

Rambam health care campus

Haifa, Israel

About this study

Importance: Robot-assisted surgery is becoming the mainstay of modern surgery. Efficient training techniques are essential for enhanced performance. Optimal performance during a surgical task is key to successful surgery and minimal adverse events.

Objective: To introduce and examine a single session of spatial skill training as an efficient means of improving surgical suturing performance in robot-assisted surgery.

Design: Forty-one surgical residents will be randomly assigned to training and control conditions. (1) participants will perform two da-Vinci skills simulator (dVSS) tasks to determine baseline performance. (2) the training group will undergo computer-based simulator training of spatial skills while the control group will engage in a neutral activity. (3) two dVSS tasks will be performed within 2 days of training completion to evaluate post-training performance. The experiment will be conducted until December 2018.

Participants: A convenience sample comprised of 41 surgical residents with non-robotic surgical suturing skills.

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

  • Surgical Residents with no previous robotic surgery experience.

Exclusion criteria

  • Non surgical residents.

Treatment and study plan

Computerized spatial skill training

Other

The spatial skills training session consisted of six practice trials that were run in a sequence. The objective of each practice was to manipulate the simulated robotic arm to grab the cubes and move them to a desired location using keyboard keys. The participant was required to reach a decision based on the visual-spatial information, before initiating subsequent movements of the simulated robotic arm. Each practice trial presented an initial state of the cubes in front of the robotic arm, and a target position of the cubes.

Watching a presentation regarding robotic surgery

Other

Watching a 20-35 minute long power-point presentation regarding the history of robotic surgery.

Primary outcomes

  1. Tissue piercing

    Time frame: up to 2 hours from enrollment

    Number of times tissue was pierced during suturing

  2. Tissue tearing

    Time frame: up to 2 hours from enrollment

    Number of times tissue was teared during suturing

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

Rambam Health Care Campus

Other

Registry information

Official study title

An Efficient Single-Session Spatial Skill Trainer for Robot-assisted Surgery: A Randomized Trial

Important dates

Study start
2017
Primary completion
2017
Study completion
2018
First posted
Nov 29, 2018
Registry last updated
Nov 29, 2018

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

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