Progress in Knee Arthroscopy Skills of Residents and Medical Students: A Prospective Assessment of Simulator Exercises and Analysis of Learning Curves

Abstract

Objective: Knee arthroscopies are very common orthopedic procedures. For a number of reasons, including increased public awareness for medical errors, patient safety, strict regulations governing duty-hours for residents, surgeons' liability, and an increasing emphasis on the efficient use of operating room time, interest in simulator training is on the rise. It was the purpose of this study to analyze learning curves of medical students and orthopedic resident surgeons using a virtual knee arthroscopy simulator.

Design: Learning curves of medical students and orthopedic residents were measured perspective using an arthroscopic training simulator for 2 different exercises. Time, camera and probe movement as well as camera and probe roughness were the parameters to be compared. Mean and standard deviation of the initial and the final score for the consecutively performed exercises as well as their slope were reported.

Setting: The study was performed at the Medical University of Innsbruck, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery. Level of clinical care: institutional.

Participants: A Students Group (n = 10) consisting of medical students at the Medical University of Innsbruck with no prior knowledge of arthroscopy but interest in orthopedic surgery was selected. The group was compared to a Residents Group (n = 9) which was comprised of orthopedic resident surgeons who had learned arthroscopy in operation courses. All participants involved in the study did several repetitions of the described exercises.

Results: Both groups improved their skills after several repetitions. Residents were on average faster, moved the camera less, and touched the cortical tissue less than the students. For certain parameters students showed a steeper improvement curve than did residents, because the students started from a different experience level.

Conclusions: In conclusion, our results demonstrate the usefulness of virtual knee arthroscopy simulators as an important tool for improving surgical and arthroscopic skills in orthopedic resident surgeons, and medical students.

Keywords: Clinical Education; Computers; Continuing Medical Education; Medical Knowledge; New technology; Practice-Based Learning and Improvement; Simulation.