Virtual reality program for endonasal surgery provides safe environment for learning critical skills
A view of the VR surgery interface, showing entry into the nostril with an overlaid CT scan to help guide the learner.
Courtesy of Eugene Chang
There is no room for trial and error when conducting a surgery on a real-life patient; aspiring surgeons require optimal, comprehensive training.
Dr. Eugene Chang
However, reliance on textbook studying and shadowing may limit surgical students' ability to develop practical skills. Here at the University of Arizona, Vice Chair of the Department of Otolaryngology Eugene Chang, MD, is working to solve these limitations through virtual reality.
As a surgeon who trains medical students, fellows and residents in endoscopic sinus and skull base surgery, Dr. Chang wanted a training method that allowed students to make mistakes, learn from them, and apply their skills in the operating room without the consequences of potentially harming a patient. This is where a virtual reality program Dr. Chang and his team created – Surgical Steps – steps in.
“The biggest problem that we’re addressing in the marketplace is how to train people and give them the experience of operating on patients and allow them to make mistakes without putting patients in danger,” Dr. Chang said.
This innovative virtual reality program simulates the steps within endoscopic sinus and skull base surgery, allowing students to identify and practice proper procedures in a virtual operating room. They perform simulated surgeries, learn situational awareness, and practice handling real-world complications, “So where things could go wrong, what the next steps would be, and the idea of looking forward to hopefully avoid patient errors and complications,” Dr. Chang said.
The technology integrates dynamic SHERPA/HTA-based decision trees, real-time CT-to-3D anatomical rendering, and contextual, tool-triggered cognitive assessments to recreate realistic, real-case scenarios, including disease progression, comorbidities and diagnostic dilemmas.
Dr. Chang’s passion for his field is rooted in his own experiences as a medical student and a resident. He recalls the difficulties he encountered when applying skills after having studied primarily from textbooks. “We learn about anatomy and we learn about surgical techniques primarily from textbooks initially,” he remembers. “When we’re taking a look at textbooks, it’s really hard to correlate words on a page to what images might look like in the human body.”
Dr. Chang and his team hope virtual imaging will become the standard of training in the near future, with integration into new educational models and surgical training programs. “With the new advances in technology, including virtual reality simulation, 3D modeling and labeling, I think we could do a much better job and bring [training] into the 21st century.”
For more information about licensing and partnership opportunities, contact Leah Langlais, Manager of Venture Development at Tech Launch Arizona, at LeahL@tla.arizona.edu or (520) 626-0639.