Assessment of muscle activity and fatigue during laparoscopic surgery

The ubiquitous nature of laparoscopic surgery and the decreased training time available for surgeons are driving an increased need for effective training systems to help surgeons learn different procedures. A cost-effective and user-friendly simulator has been designed to imitate specific training tasks for laparoscopic surgery in virtual environments via image processing and computer vision. The capability of using various actual surgical instruments suited for these specific procedures gives heightened fidelity to the simulator. Image processing via matlab software provides real-time mapping of the graspers in the workspace to the virtual reality (VR) environment (vizard software). Two different tasks (peg transfer and needle passing) were designed to evaluate trainees and compare their performance with characteristics of expert surgeons. Pilot testing of the system was carried out with 11 subjects to validate the similarity of this device with an existing surgical box trainer. Task completion time and muscle activity have been used as metrics for evaluation. The decrease in completion time for all subjects suggests similarity of skills transfer for both simulators. In addition, the p-value of muscle activity showed no significant differences for most muscles in the peg transfer task when using either the VR or physical analog environment and no significant differences for about half of the muscles in the needle passing task. Based on the results, the new proposed VR simulator appears to be a viable alternative to help trainees gain laparoscopic skills.

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Using infrared imaging for assessment of muscular activity in the forearm of surgeons in the performance of laparoscopic tasks

Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers Part H Journal of Engineering in Medicine ◽

10.1177/0954411919863547 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 233 (10) ◽

pp. 999-1009 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Ramon Sancibrian ◽

Maria C Gutierrez-Diez ◽

Carlos Redondo-Figuero ◽

Jose R Llata ◽

Jose C Manuel-Palazuelos

Keyword(s):

Laparoscopic Surgery ◽

Working Conditions ◽

Muscle Activity ◽

Infrared Imaging ◽

Muscular Activity ◽

Remote Measurement ◽

Delayed Response ◽

Area Of Interest ◽

Best Value ◽

Two Stages

Surgeons working in laparoscopic surgery are subjected to hard working conditions because of the poor ergonomic characteristics of the workplace. The improvement in the working conditions requires the use of reliable techniques for the assessment of muscular activity. In this article infrared imaging is used and compared with electromyography for the evaluation of muscle activity in the performance of laparoscopic surgical tasks. Electromyography has been widely used for the evaluation of the electrical activity produced by the muscles in the performance of surgery. On the contrary, infrared imaging is an innovative technique that has not been sufficiently explored. An experimental evaluation was carried out using a thermography camera and recording the infrared images from volunteers in different tests. Pearson’s correlation was obtained between the electromyography and thermographic measurements in two stages: Endurance Stage (best value: ρ = 0.8401 with p < 0.01) and Surgical Task (best value: ρ = 0.8309 with p < 0.01). The article demonstrates that infrared imaging is a valuable technique for the evaluation of muscle activity in laparoscopic surgery, and it can be compared with electromyography. The main advantages of infrared imaging are that it allows remote measurement and provides activity information in the whole area of interest. However, drawbacks such as delayed response of the infrared imaging due to thermal conductivity of the skin should be considered. Electromyography only provides information in the location of the electrodes, but it is a real-time response. For these reasons, the techniques complement each other.

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1168: Wound Complications after Hand-Assisted Laparoscopic Surgery (HALS)

The Journal of Urology ◽

10.1016/s0022-5347(18)35313-8 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 173 (4S) ◽

pp. 317-317 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Jeffrey S. Montgomery ◽

Willam K. Johnston ◽

J. Stuart Wolf

Keyword(s):

Laparoscopic Surgery ◽

Wound Complications

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899: Hans Christian Jacobaeus the Pioneer of Laparoscopic Surgery

The Journal of Urology ◽

10.1016/s0022-5347(18)35055-9 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 173 (4S) ◽

pp. 243-243

Author(s):

Martin Hatzinger ◽

Jasmin K. Badawi ◽

Axel Häcker ◽

Stefan Kamp ◽

Achim Lusch

Keyword(s):

Laparoscopic Surgery

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Myoelectric Activity Differences in Three Learning Sessions

Journal of Psychophysiology ◽

10.1027//0269-8803.16.2.92 ◽

2002 ◽

Vol 16 (2) ◽

pp. 92-96

Author(s):

Tiina Ritvanen ◽

Reijo Koskelo ◽

Osmo H„nninen

Keyword(s):

High School Students ◽

Muscle Activity ◽

Muscle Tension ◽

Emg Activity ◽

Traditional Learning ◽

Myoelectric Activity ◽

School Students ◽

Language Laboratory ◽

Upper Trapezius ◽

Muscle Groups

Abstract This study follows muscle activity in three different learning sessions (computer, language laboratory, and normal classroom) while students were studying foreign languages. Myoelectric activity was measured in 21 high school students (10 girls, 11 boys, age range 17-20 years) by surface electromyography (sEMG) from the upper trapezius and frontalis muscles during three 45-min sessions. Root mean square (RMS) average from both investigated muscles was calculated. The EMG activity was highest in both muscle groups in the computer-aided session and lowest in the language laboratory. The girls had higher EMG activity in both investigated muscle groups in all three learning situations. The measured blood pressure was highest at the beginning of the sessions, decreased within 10 min, but increased again toward the end of the sessions. Our results indicate that the use of a computer as a teaching-aid evokes more constant muscle activity than the traditional learning situations. Since muscle tension can have adverse health consequences, more research is needed to determine optimal classroom conditions, especially when technical aids are used in teaching.

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