Towards the development of a haptic simulator of surgical gestures in orthopaedic spine surgery.

The objective of the present work is to develop a haptic system that will permit the demonstration of a proof of concept for the simulation of haptic effects typical of pediatric spine surgery. The first phase of this project focused on the development of a custom haptic system, and was followed by evaluation with experienced orthopedic surgeons. Initial findings demonstrate promise of this approach for further development into an advanced haptic system.