Surgical Suture Training Development for the HTC Vive Pro 2 Virtual Reality Headset

Abstract

In this thesis, a surgical suture training for the HTC Vive Pro 2 virtual reality headset was developed in Unity. Three scenes were created to reproduce a surgical operating room equipped with an operating table, surgical instruments, and the lower limb on which perform the procedure. The training execution is guided step by step via written commands, virtual indicators aiding the user in selecting the instruments to manipulate, and a virtual assistant.

Customized C# scripts were introduced to give dynamism to events and objects in the scenes, allowing, for example, the opening and closing of surgical scissors. This training allows the user to improve the accuracy of movements and to reduce the execution time of surgical procedures, thanks to the possibility of repeating them as many times as necessary.

This thesis aimed to improve some of the limitations found in a previous training realized with the Hololens 2 headset, allowing them to be overcome and increasing the sense of immersiveness perceived by the user.

Objective

• Develop a surgical suture procedure in Unity using the HTC Vive Pro 2 virtual reality headset.

• Compare the results obtained from training using the HTC Vive Pro 2 with those obtained in a previous thesis in which the same procedure was performed using Hololens 2.

Methodology

Bibliographic research

Conclusions

Performing a surgical procedure in a virtual environment has several advantages:

• The simulation of complex scenarios in a safe virtual environment
• The increase in learning speed due to the stimulation of active learning principles

• The improvement of the precision and accuracy of movements and the reduction of procedure execution time

Future developments

In the future, the convergence of virtual reality, augmented reality, and artificial intelligence will enable health care providers to provide highly integrated and personalized care modalities. Rapid physician-patient and physician-physician communication will enable unprecedented levels of sophistication in prevention, diagnosis and treatment.