How do young residents practice laparoscopic surgical skills?

OBJECTIVES

To investigate whether a training system using a dry box is feasible for training young urologists. Despite laparoscopic surgery being widely indicated for several urological diseases, a laparoscopic training system for young urologists has not been fully established yet. However, the learning curve for laparoscopic surgery has not yet been ascertained.

METHODS

We continued to test 11 sixth-year residents (postgraduate year: PGY6) and third-year residents (PGY3) in our department in terms of surgical skills using a dry box. We gave them several tasks (cutting and suturing) and let them practice until task completion. We continued to test all participants by these tasks for 16 weeks.

RESULTS

At the beginning of the present study, the PGY6 residents achieved significantly better scores than the PGY3 residents. However, the difference between the 2 groups became insignificant over time. Furthermore, statistical analysis revealed that a practice time of 100 minutes per week was the only significant factor affecting the last test score. For the final test, the mean practice time for all participants was 79.1 minutes per week.

CONCLUSIONS

These results suggest that laparoscopic surgical skills can definitely be polished by adequate voluntary practice.