Novel do-it-yourself low-cost abdominal laparoscopy entry simulator for gynaecology trainees

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected gynaecology trainees in the United Kingdom by reducing operating theatre experience. Simulators are widely used for operative laparoscopy but not for practising laparoscopic-entry techniques. We devised a low-cost simulator to help trainees achieve the skill. Our aim was to pilot this low-cost simulator to perform Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) supervised learning events.A single-centre pilot study involving six gynaecology trainees in a structured training session. Interactive PowerPoint teaching was followed by trainees’ demonstration of laparoscopic entry for a supervised learning event and personalized feedback. Participants completed pre- and post-course questionnaires.All the trainees found the training useful to the score of 10 (scale of 1–10) and recommended this to be included in Deanery teaching. Personalized feedback was described as the most useful. The simulator was rated as good as a real-life patient relative to the skill being taught.Gynaecology trainees are affected by lack of hands-on experience in the operating theatre for performing laparoscopic entry. A low-cost abdominal laparoscopy entry simulator can help deliver the RCOG curriculum, enabling trainees to achieve required competencies.

Comparison of Complications between Direct Trocar Insertion Versus Veress Needle for Creation of Pneumoperitoneum in Patients Undergoing laparoscopic Cholecystectomy: A Randomized Control Trial

Aim: To compare the outcomes in term of complication of Veress Needle Insertion (VNI) to Direct Trocar Insertion (DTI) for creation of pneumoperitoneum in laparoscopic cholecystectomy. Design: Randomized controlled trial Place and Duration of Study: The current analysis was conducted at Khawaja Muhammad Safdar Medical College Surgical Department, Allama Iqbal Memorial Hospital and Govt. Sardar Begum Teaching Hospital, Sialkot from September 27, 2017, to September 26, 2020. Methodology: A total of six hundred and eight (n=608) patients, having age 30 to 75 years planned for laparoscopic cholecystectomy were included in this study. Patients were randomly divided into two groups, Group A (Direct Trocar Insertion), Group B (Veress Needle Insertion). Both groups had age and sex matched males and female. All trocars and veress needle used were disposable, with a safety shield. The primary outcome of our study was to compare the complications to assess the safety levels, while total time taken by the procedure and mean time for laparoscopic entry were the secondary end points. The collected data was analyzed by using software SPSS version 22. Chi-square test was used to check the significance of variance. P-value less than 0.05 remained the statistically significant. Results: The complication rate in VNI group were significantly greater than the DTI group (p < 0.01), the duration of surgery between the two groups was not significantly different (p > 0.05), but we found statistically significant difference in mean laparoscope insertion time (DTI 3.4+ 1.4 versus VNI 4.8+ 0.7 minutes, p < 0.001). Conclusion: From the results of our study, it can be concluded that the direct trocar insertion is a safe alternative to veress needle insertion in laparoscopic cholecystectomy as it is associated with fewer complications.

A novel Veress needle mechanism that reduces overshooting after puncturing the abdominal wall

Background Complications that occur in laparoscopic surgery are often associated with the initial entry into the peritoneal cavity. The literature reported incidences of Veress needle (VN) injuries of e.g. 0.31% and 0.23%. In a 2010 national survey of laparoscopic entry techniques in the Canadian General Surgical practice, 57.3% of respondents had either experienced or witnessed a serious laparoscopic entry complication like bowel perforation and vascular injury. As those complications are potentially life threatening and should be avoided at all costs, improving safety of this initial action is paramount. Methods Based on a bare minimum design approach with focus on function expansion of existing components, a new Safety mechanism was developed for the VN that decreases the risks of VN overshooting. The mechanism works by preventing the puncturing acceleration of the tip of the VN by decoupling the surgeon’s hand from the VN immediately after entering the abdomen. Results Based on a set of requirements, a first prototype of the VN+ with force decoupling safety mechanism is presented and evaluated on an ex vivo porcine abdominal wall tissue model in a custom setup. The experiments conducted by two novices and one experienced surgeon indicated a significant difference between the attempts with a standard, conventional working VN (41.4 mm [37.5–45 mm]) and VN+ with decoupling mechanism (20.8 mm [17.5–22.5 mm]) of p < 0.001. Conclusion A new decoupling safety mechanism was integrated successfully in a standard VN resulting in a VN+ . The results from the pilot study indicate that this new VN+ reduces overshooting with a minimum of 50% in a standardised ex vivo setting on fresh porcine abdominal wall specimens.