Thoracoscopic lobectomy simulation produces sustained improvement in knowledge of pulmonary anatomy

• Published in: Global surgical education : journal of the Association for Surgical Education 2024-12, Vol.4 (1), Article 10
• Main Authors: Brocke, Tiffany K., Brambora, Jenna, Tohmasi, Steven, Ray, Shuddhadeb, Nava Bahena, Ruben, Awad, Michael M.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Medical Education; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Original Article; Surgery
• ISSN: 2731-4588; 2731-4588
• DOI: 10.1007/s44186-024-00310-0

Purpose There is growing interest in simulation in cardiothoracic surgery, but published simulation models lack evidence of educational effect. We hypothesized that a video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) lobectomy simulation would improve general surgery resident knowledge of pulmonary anatomy. Methods A porcine tissue block was adapted from published models for simulated VATS lobectomy. A written knowledge test was developed internally based on general surgery objectives. All post-graduate year 2–4 general surgery residents ( n  = 31) at a single academic institution completed the test before and after participating in a VATS lobectomy skills lab, then repeated the written test 3 months later to assess knowledge retention. Likert-scale items were compared with Wilcoxon signed-rank test and test scores were compared with the paired t -test. Results After completion of the lab, residents had improved confidence in their ability to place VATS ports (5-point Likert, median: 2 vs 3), perform a VATS lobectomy (median: 1 vs 3), and in their knowledge of pulmonary hilar anatomy (median: 2 vs 3), all p