Development of technical skills in simulated cerebral aneurysm coiling.

Endovascular surgical procedures require visual-spatial coordination in workspaces with restricted motions and temporally limited imaging. The development of the skills needed for these procedures can be facilitated by 3D simulator-based training. Cerebral angiography (CA) has lagged behind in this training approach due to the lack of validated, realistic training models, relying strictly on clinical case exposure frequency ("number of hours logged") as a means of assessing proficiency.

Simulation reduces navigational errors in cerebral angiography training.

Background: Simulation-based medical education (SBME) is growing as a powerful aid in delivering proficient skills training in many specialties. Cerebral angiography (CA), a spatially and navigationally challenging endovascular procedure, can benefit from SBME by training targetable skills outside of the Angiosuite. In order to standardize and specify training requirements, navigational challenges and needs have to be identified.

Evaluation of User Performance in Simulation-Based Diagnostic Cerebral Angiography Training.

Simulation of anatomically complex procedures, such as angiography, is becoming more practical, however, computer-based modules require extensive research to assess their effectiveness. We organized two training schemas - alternating cases and consistent cases - and hypothesized that the alternating practice cases would be beneficial to test performance. Eight residents (4 radiology/4 neurosurgery) and 8 anatomy graduate students were trained on the Simbionix™ simulator in order to assess skill acquisition in diagnostic cerebral angiography over 8 sessions.