This article is more than 5 years old. Information may no longer be current.
SFO moves from wet labs to dry labs with surgical simulators
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts
PARIS — The French Society of Ophthalmology has moved from wet labs to dry labs, providing surgical training with the use of simulators.
“We have acquired two Eyesi simulators (VRmagic) that are available all year round at our office for scheduled training sessions. They have now been brought to the meeting, and we have hired another two of these machines to provide training in cataract and vitrectomy surgery to young attendees,” Jean-François Korobelnik, MD, SFO president, said in an interview with Ocular Surgery News.
Jean-François Korobelnik
The Eyesi simulator provides a realistic feel of surgery. The student sees 3-D images through the microscope, handles instruments and uses foot pedals. The system gives a complete feedback of the student’s performance, monitoring hand pressure, hand tremor and action of the instruments. As in real phaco and vitrectomy machines, surgical parameters can be adjusted to match a variety of simulated surgical situations.
“Dry lab has several advantages over traditional wet lab training,” Korobelnik said. “You don’t need animal eyes; it’s very clan; it allows you to repeat the surgery again and again. You can modulate the difficulty of surgery and learn the procedure step by step.”
Simulators, he said, will be increasingly adopted in French hospitals for training residents and will enhance the quality of surgical training. Training sessions for SFO members can be booked through the SFO website at www.sfo.asso.fr/professionnels/simulateurs.
Disclosure: Korobelnik has no relevant financial disclosures.