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CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · International Journal of Practical Otolaryngology 2022; 05(01): e45-e50
DOI: 10.1055/s-0042-1759820
Original Article

Using Virtual Reality to Teach Sinus Anatomy

Kei Hosoya
1   Department of Head and Neck and Sensory Organ Science, Graduate School of Medicine, Nippon Medical School, Tokyo, Japan
2   Department of Otolaryngology, Nippon Medical School Chiba Hokusoh Hospital, Chiba, Japan
,
Taro Komachi
1   Department of Head and Neck and Sensory Organ Science, Graduate School of Medicine, Nippon Medical School, Tokyo, Japan
2   Department of Otolaryngology, Nippon Medical School Chiba Hokusoh Hospital, Chiba, Japan
,
Maki Sugimoto
3   Innovation Lab, Teikyo University Okinaga Research Institute, Tokyo, Japan
,
Ayaho Yoshino
1   Department of Head and Neck and Sensory Organ Science, Graduate School of Medicine, Nippon Medical School, Tokyo, Japan
2   Department of Otolaryngology, Nippon Medical School Chiba Hokusoh Hospital, Chiba, Japan
,
Junko Kuya
1   Department of Head and Neck and Sensory Organ Science, Graduate School of Medicine, Nippon Medical School, Tokyo, Japan
2   Department of Otolaryngology, Nippon Medical School Chiba Hokusoh Hospital, Chiba, Japan
,
Kimihiro Okubo
1   Department of Head and Neck and Sensory Organ Science, Graduate School of Medicine, Nippon Medical School, Tokyo, Japan
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Abstract

Anatomy education is a crucial part of the curriculum for medical students, and it is essential for surgeons to perform safe surgery. The anatomy of the sinus cavity is complicated and cannot be easily understood through cadaver dissection practice and reading of surgical anatomy textbooks. Therefore, the development of methods to effectively teach the anatomy of such complex structures is essential for performing safe medical procedures. This study aimed to investigate whether the use of virtual reality (VR) in an educational course on paranasal sinus anatomy could contribute to the understanding and learning efficiency of dissection of the complex sinus anatomy. We devised a system to observe the paranasal sinuses in the VR space by polygonizing the shape of the sinus cavity using computed tomography images of the sinuses. Medical students moved around the VR space and viewed the sinuses from different angles using the VR system; notably, this is impossible in a conventional anatomy laboratory. A questionnaire was administered to 27 medical students (15 men and 12 women; mean age, 24.9 years) to evaluate their understanding of the sinus anatomy and the number of times they had experienced VR and used VR systems. We found that more than 70% of the students had never used VR before, but they could easily use it even if they were unfamiliar with the operation of the VR system, and the learning process was enjoyable and efficient. Thus, the VR application could be a useful tool for educating medical students.

Keywords

medical education - virtual reality - anatomy - sinus

Informed Consent

Informed consent was obtained from all participants prior to the study.




Publication History

Received: 26 April 2022

Accepted: 14 September 2022

Article published online:
20 December 2022

© 2022. The Author(s). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)

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