A virtual reality (VR) program designed for early-career interventional radiologists and medical students is being further developed for use in health simulations and medical emergencies, according to a report in the Journal of the American College of Radiology.
VR, though popular in the present-day media landscape, has been in development for nearly five decades, first author Colin J. McCarthy, MD, and colleagues wrote. The resurgence of the tech, which the authors said has been driven by the entertainment and video game industries, has allowed for the modernization—and miniaturization—of VR, paving the way for a more handheld, immersive experience.
Medical specialties are learning to apply VR technology to surgical skills training, stroke rehabilitation and management of emergencies, McCarthy et al. wrote. In the case of their team’s project, DynaMITE (Dynamic Medical Immersive Training Environment), interventional radiologists were able to participate in training modules constructed from a series of 3D and 360-degree GoPro videos.
“Immersive display holds tremendous potential to enhance education in interventional radiology, particularly in trainees with little or no experience with procedures, by serving as an adjunct to existing learning methods including hands-on experience, basic lectures and textbooks,” McCarthy and co-authors said. “Novice trainees frequently start in interventional radiology with little or no knowledge of the fundamentals; the VR headset allows trainees to immerse themselves in the radiology suite.”
The authors created an introductory interventional radiology tutorial outlining the steps involved in setting up a sterile field and asked 12 participants—six attending radiologists, five fellows and one resident—for feedback on the pilot. Nine of 12 reported the sample module was either “good” or “excellent”, and seven said they believed the VR technology could potentially contribute to the future of radiology training.
Though response was overall positive, some participants did say they suffered from motion sickness and would have preferred a more interactive 3D experience. The nausea, sometimes referred to as “cybersickness,” is just one of a handful of common complaints the developing field of VR needs to address, McCarthy et al. said.
“Although advances in VR and augmented reality offer potential, much of the work is at an early stage,” they wrote. “This applies to not only the technology, which is improving with advancements in computer processing power and graphics rendering, but also the utilization of such technology for medical training. This relatively new technology will require continued research and development before it becomes widely accepted.”
After graduating from Indiana University-Bloomington with a bachelor’s in journalism, Anicka joined TriMed’s Chicago team in 2017 covering cardiology. Close to her heart is long-form journalism, Pilot G-2 pens, dark chocolate and her dog Harper Lee.