Perceptual and instrumental impacts of robotic laparoscopy on surgical performance

Excerpt

New technologies in surgery are in constant and considerable evolution; they transform the surgeon’s activity and practice. In laparoscopic surgery, new systems allow the use of two- (2D) or three-dimensional (3D) vision. However, the literature reports contradictory results concerning the benefits of 3D vision: some studies show that better motor performances are obtained with 3D vision [1, 8, 19, 25, 26] while others fail to reveal any difference in performance between 2D and 3D vision [5, 6, 12, 20]. In some studies [5], only complex tasks were performed faster and more easily with a 3D view whereas no difference between the use of 2D and 3D views appeared when performing the easiest tasks. The divergence in these results is partially due to the fact that first-generation 3D systems, with their lower resolution, were compared with standard 2D systems [10]. Nowadays, new 3D systems allow a natural bidimensional view and thus suppress the bias observed in previous studies. …