Construção de simulador laparoscópico de média fidelidade e avaliação da curva de aprendizagem

Abstract

Introduction: In undergraduate medical schools, realistic simulation has been applied more and more as a means of providing students and physicians with the development of technical skills through task repetition, performed in a controlled environment, without compromising the patient’s safety. Objective: This study aimed to build a medium fidelity laparoscopic simulator and evaluate the learning curve generated by the training of general surgery students and residents. Method: After the construction of the medium fidelity laparoscopic simulator, 3rd and 4th year undergraduate students of José do Rosário Vellano University (UNIFENAS) School of Medicine, campus Alfenas, and resident doctors at Alzira Velano University Hospital, underwent training and their learning curve were evaluated by the time taken to perform the task and the mistakes made. Results: Twenty-seven subjects of both sexes (70% women) participated in the research, of which seven were residents and 20 were students between 5th to 8th semesters of medical school. The manufacture of the medium fidelity simulator was made possible at a cost of R$300.00 per unit. Students who previously participated in surgery academic leagues took less time in the first test compared to those who did not participate (372.9 ± 89.1 vs 259.0 ± 90.5 where p=0.032). Likewise, the number of repetitions needed to reach 90% of the best score was lower (7.0 ± 4.6 vs 11.9 ± 1.7 where p=0.013). The intention to follow a surgical career also proved to be associated with a better score on the first test (282.9 ± 78.2 vs 406.9 ± 87.6 where p=0.011) and a lower number of repetitions needed to reach 90% of the best score (8.8 ± 4.1 vs 12.4 ± 0.8 with p=0.017). Conclusion: The laparoscopic simulator allowed all participants to have a progressive improvement in scoring results and reduced task execution time during repetitions. Students interested in the surgical area and who participated in academic leagues showed better performance in the learning curve. These findings, sided with the equipment's low production cost, reveal its potential as a surgical skill training tool, as well as indicate the need of incorporating new tasks into the simulator