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World Journal of Gastrointestinal Surgery. Sep 27, 2015; 7(9): 185-189
Published online Sep 27, 2015. doi: 10.4240/wjgs.v7.i9.185
Need for simulation in laparoscopic colorectal surgery training
Valerio Celentano
Valerio Celentano, Colorectal Unit, Federico II University, 80131 Naples, Italy
Author contributions: Celentano V solely contributed to this manuscript.
Conflict-of-interest statement: As a corresponding author I declare that there is no conflict of interest.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Correspondence to: Dr. Valerio Celentano, Colorectal Unit, Federico II University, Via Pansini, 5, 80131 Naples, Italy. valeriocelentano@yahoo.it
Telephone: +39-33-95023785
Received: May 9, 2015
Peer-review started: May 11, 2015
First decision: June 2, 2015
Revised: June 30, 2015
Accepted: July 8, 2015
Article in press: July 8, 2015
Published online: September 27, 2015
Processing time: 143 Days and 8.8 Hours
Abstract

The dissemination of laparoscopic colorectal surgery (LCS) has been slow despite increasing evidence for the clinical benefits, with a prolonged learning curve being one of the main restrictions for a prompt uptake. Performing advanced laparoscopic procedures requires dedicated surgical skills and new simulation methods designed precisely for LCS have been established: These include virtual reality simulators, box trainers, animal and human tissue and synthetic materials. Studies have even demonstrated an improvement in trainees’ laparoscopic skills in the actual operating room and a staged approach to surgical simulation with a combination of various training methods should be mandatory in every colorectal training program. The learning curve for LCS could be reduced through practice and skills development in a riskfree setting.

Keywords: Surgical simulation; Laparoscopic surgery; Surgical training; Colorectal surgery

Core tip: Performing advanced laparoscopic procedures requires dedicated surgical skills and new simulation methods tailored precisely for laparoscopic colorectal surgery (LCS) have been established. This review focuses on a very actual topic in gastrointestinal surgery: The learning curve in minimally invasive surgery and the need for mechanisms to shorten the time needed for a trainee surgeon to safely move towards independent practice. This review article critically analyses the current role of simulation for LCS training.