Interactive Surgery System with 3D Electromagnetic Motion Tracker for Training Surgeons in Skin Cutting Skills Needed in Total Knee Arthroplasty

Total knee arthroplasty (TKA) is an effective surgery for knees damaged by osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, and post-traumatic arthritis. This procedure requires an expert surgeon with a high level of skill and experience. Although a navigation system for improving precision and shortening operative time has been already studied, there has not yet been a study done on an instruction system for improving the skills of surgeons. The purpose of this study is to develop a training system that teaches the TKA surgery so that non-expert surgeons can use it to obtain skin-cutting skills. The proposed method includes a simulator for a model knee with a 3D electromagnetism motion tracker. Through experimentation, a method of evaluating incisions into the skin is established by tracing a line with a mock scalpel. The proposed method is applied to six non-experts. The results for the length experiments are 87.82±8.88 (Set 1: non-teaching), 92.66±5.77 (Set 2: teaching), and 92.14±6.17 (Set 3: non-teaching). The results for the position experiments are 70.64±15.11 (Set 1: non-teaching), 83.63±10.07 (Set 2: teaching), and 82.05±7.80 (Set 3: non-teaching). In conclusion, the proposed method succeeds in teaching the operator scalpel incision skills.