Iqbal Nayyar, Kandasamy Ravichandran, O Johnson, R Balasundaram, Jyothish Karthika
General Medicine, Pondicherry Institute of Medical Sciences, Pondicherry, IND.
Biostatistics, Pondicherry Institute of Medical Sciences, Pondicherry, IND.
Cureus. 2024 Jun 11;16(6):e62170. doi: 10.7759/cureus.62170. eCollection 2024 Jun.
Introduction The electrocardiogram (ECG) is one of the most important tools in diagnosing cardiac abnormalities, particularly arrhythmias and myocardial infarction. It is one of the certifiable competencies for final-year medical undergraduate students. We determined virtual reality's effectiveness in acquiring and retaining ECG interpretation skills among medical students compared to traditional teaching. Methods One hundred and forty students were randomized into two groups. Seventy-one students (immersion group) were trained using virtual reality simulation to acquire and retain interpretation skills of normal and abnormal ECG. Sixty-nine students (traditional group) were trained in the classroom using chalk and board. The primary outcome of change in acquiring knowledge of the interpretation of ECG was determined by comparing pre and post-test scores. The secondary outcome of retention of knowledge was determined by comparing pre-test and second post-test scores conducted after eight weeks of intervention. The p-value of <0.05 was considered significant. Results Out of 140 students, 50 (35.7%) were males and 90 (64.3%) were female. The mean age of the students was 22.1 (SD 1.1), with 69.3% of them between the ages of 21 and 22 years. Mean pre-test scores for the interpretation of normal ECG among immersion and traditional groups were 9.8 (SD 8.4) and 8.3 (SD 7.5), respectively, and post-test scores for the acquisition of knowledge were 24.3 (SD 5.5) and 24.8 (SD 6.3), respectively. The post-test scores for retention skills were 25.3 (SD 5.6) and 20.7 (SD 6.9) respectively (p<0.001). The mean pre-test scores for the interpretation of abnormal ECG of both groups were 7.0 (SD 6) and 8.3 (SD 6.6), respectively. Mean post-test scores for acquiring knowledge to interpret abnormal ECG were 23.5 (SD 6.2) and 17.7 (SD 9), respectively (p<0.001), and mean post-test scores for retention of interpretation skills of abnormal ECG were 19.2 (SD - 6.9) and 13.3 (SD 10.2) respectively (p=0.001). The pairwise comparison of the immersion group indicates that all the combinations that changed in score from the pre to post-intervention time points, from pre-to-retention time, and from the post-to-retention time were significant (p<0.001). Conclusion Virtual reality teaching had a better impact on acquiring and retaining the skill for interpreting normal and abnormal electrocardiograms.
引言
心电图（ECG）是诊断心脏异常，尤其是心律失常和心肌梗死的最重要工具之一。它是医学本科最后一年学生的可认证能力之一。我们比较了虚拟现实与传统教学在医学生获取和保留心电图解读技能方面的有效性。
方法
140名学生被随机分为两组。71名学生（沉浸式组）使用虚拟现实模拟进行培训，以获取和保留正常及异常心电图的解读技能。69名学生（传统组）在教室使用粉笔和黑板进行培训。通过比较测试前和测试后的分数来确定获取心电图解读知识变化的主要结果。通过比较干预八周后进行的测试前和第二次测试后的分数来确定知识保留的次要结果。p值<0.05被认为具有统计学意义。
结果
在140名学生中，50名（35.7%）为男性，90名（64.3%）为女性。学生的平均年龄为22.1岁（标准差1.1），其中69.3%的学生年龄在21至22岁之间。沉浸式组和传统组正常心电图解读的平均测试前分数分别为9.8（标准差8.4）和8.3（标准差7.5），获取知识的测试后分数分别为24.3（标准差5.5）和24.8（标准差6.3）。保留技能的测试后分数分别为25.3（标准差5.6）和20.7（标准差6.9）（p<0.001）。两组异常心电图解读的平均测试前分数分别为7.0（标准差6）和8.3（标准差6.6）。解读异常心电图获取知识的平均测试后分数分别为23.5（标准差6.2）和17.7（标准差9）（p<0.001），异常心电图解读技能保留的平均测试后分数分别为19.2（标准差6.9）和13.3（标准差10.2）（p=0.001）。沉浸式组的两两比较表明，从干预前到干预后时间点、从干预前到保留时间以及从干预后到保留时间分数发生变化的所有组合均具有统计学意义（p<0.001）。
结论
虚拟现实教学在获取和保留正常及异常心电图解读技能方面有更好的效果。
