Playing Wii Helps Doctors Become Better Surgeons

Editor's Choice
Academic Journal
Main Category: Medical Students / Training
Article Date: 01 Mar 2013 - 0:00 PST


Paying Wii helps doctors become better surgeons by improving certain aspects of their performance on laparoscopic procedures.

The finding came from a new study conducted by Gregorio Patrizi and a team from the University of Rome, Italy and was published in the journal PLOS ONE.

Many reports aim to assess and improve training for surgeons outside of the operating room because of the technical skills necessary to perform laparascopic procedures.

A report published in BMC Medical Education indicated that most medical students believe that video games and virtual reality environments can help them become better doctors.

Prior research has evaluated how hand-eye coordination and spatial attention is impacted by playing video games.

The investigators in the current study combined these two aspects by analyzing how the laparoscopic skills of forty-two post-graduate residents in the first or second year of their surgical training were affected by a four-week training regimen on the Nintendo® Wii.

The surgeons were divided into two groups: half were assigned to a training regimen on the Wii, which they played for an hour a day, five days a week, and the other half did not play Wii.

Those in the Wii group were allowed to play the following 3 games:

• Wii Tennis
• Wii Table Tennis
• High Altitude Battle

A laparoscopic stimulator was used to evaluate the volunteers' performance before and after the regimen.

Results showed that there were improvements in the skills of all subjects over the four week period.

However, the surgeons who had been playing Wii demonstrated a notable improvement over the group in their performance on many particular metrics like efficient cautery and economy of instrument movements.

The authors concluded:

"The Nintendo® Wii might be helpful, inexpensive and entertaining part of the training of young laparoscopists, in addition to a standard surgical education based on simulators and the operating room."

Previous research showed that Nintendo Wii may help doctors interpret radiology exams. Scientists said that the Wii remote makes examining CT and MRI images more ergonomic.

Written by Sarah Glynn
Copyright: Medical News Today
Not to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today

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