Systematic Reviews
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2023. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Nephrol. Sep 25, 2023; 12(4): 104-111
Published online Sep 25, 2023. doi: 10.5527/wjn.v12.i4.104
Role of simulation in kidney stone disease: A systematic review of literature trends in the 26 years
Carlotta Nedbal, Victoria Jahrreiss, Clara Cerrato, Amelia Pietropaolo, Andrea Galosi, Domenico Veneziano, Panagiotis Kallidonis, Bhaskar K Somani
Carlotta Nedbal, Victoria Jahrreiss, Clara Cerrato, Amelia Pietropaolo, Bhaskar K Somani, Department of Urology, University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust, Southampton SO16 6YD, United Kingdom
Andrea Galosi, Department of Urology, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria delle Marche, Polytechnic University of Marche, Ancona 60121, Italy
Domenico Veneziano, Department of Urology, The Smith Institute for Urology, Northwell Health, New York, NY 11042, United States
Panagiotis Kallidonis, Department of Urology, University of Patras, Patras 26500, Greece
Author contributions: Nedbal C contributed to writing; Nedbal C and Jahrreiss V contributed to data collection; Cerrato C contributed to data analysis; Pietropaolo A, Galosi AB, Veneziano D, Kallidonis P, and Somani BK contributed to editing; Somani BK contributed to conceptualization and coordintation.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
PRISMA 2009 Checklist statement: The authors have read the PRISMA 2009 Checklist, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the PRISMA 2009 Checklist.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (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: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Bhaskar K Somani, FRCS (Ed), Full Professor, Department of Urology, University Hospital Southampton NHS Trust, Tremona Road, Southampton SO16 6YD, United Kingdom. bhaskarsomani@yahoo.com
Received: May 12, 2023
Peer-review started: May 12, 2023
First decision: June 1, 2023
Revised: June 7, 2023
Accepted: June 25, 2023
Article in press: June 25, 2023
Published online: September 25, 2023
Processing time: 130 Days and 17 Hours
Abstract
BACKGROUND

Minimally invasive techniques for treatment of urinary stones requires expertise, experience and endoscopic skills. Simulators provide a low-stress and low-risk environment while providing a realistic set-up and training opportunities.

AIM

To report the publication trend of ‘simulation in urolithiasis’ over the last 26 years.

METHODS

Research of all published papers on “Simulation in Urolithiasis” was performed through PubMed database over the last 26 years, from January 1997 to December 2022. Papers were labelled and divided in three subgroups: (1) Training papers; (2) Clinical simulation application or surgical procedures; and (3) Diagnostic radiology simulation. Each subgroup was then divided into two 13-year time periods to compare and identify the contrast of different decades: period-1 (1997-2009) and period-2 (2010-2022).

RESULTS

A total of 168 articles published on the application of simulation in urolithiasis over the last 26 years (training: n = 94, surgical procedures: n = 66, and radiology: n = 8). The overall number of papers published in simulation in urolithiasis was 35 in Period-1 and 129 in Period-2, an increase of +269% (P = 0.0002). Each subgroup shows a growing trend of publications from Period-1 to Period-2: training papers +279% (P = 0.001), surgical simulations +264% (P = 0.0180) and radiological simulations +200% (P = 0.2105).

CONCLUSION

In the last decades there has been a step up of papers regarding training protocols with the aid of various simulation devices, with simulators now a part of training programs. With the development of 3D-printed and high-fidelity models, simulation for surgical procedure planning and patients counseling is also a growing field and this trend will continue to rise in the next few years.

Keywords: Kidney calculi; Urolithiasis; Simulation; Ureteroscopy; Percutaneous nephrolithotomy; Artificial intelligence

Core Tip: The role of simulation training in the management of kidney stones has evolved. There has been a step up of papers regarding training protocols with the aid of various simulation devices, with simulators now a part of training programs. With the development of three-dimensional printed and high-fidelity models, simulation for kidney stone procedure planning and patients counseling is also a growing field and this trend will continue to rise in the next few years.