title: A preliminary study in using virtual reality to train dental students.
abstract: This study compared virtual reality simulator-enhanced training with laboratory-only practice on the development of dental technical skills. Sixty-eight students were randomly assigned to practice their skills in either a traditional preclinical dentistry laboratory or in combination with a virtual reality simulator. The results indicate that students who trained with the virtual reality simulator between six and ten hours improved significantly more than did the students in the control group from the first examination of the year to the final examination of the year. These results indicate that the use of virtual reality simulators holds promise for the training of future dentists. Additional research is necessary to determine the ideal implementation of virtual reality simulators into traditional dentistry curricula.
authors.affiliation: University of Toronto, Faculty of Medicine, Centre for Research in Education, ON. vicki.leblanc@utoronto.ca
authors.forename: Vicki R
authors.initials: VR
authors.lastname: LeBlanc
authors.forename: Alice
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Urbankova
authors.forename: Farhad
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Hadavi
authors.forename: Richard M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Lichtenthal
mesh_terms: D002983:Clinical Competence; D003198:Computer Simulation; D003194:Computer-Assisted Instruction / Q000379:methods*; D003814:Dentistry, Operative / Q000193:education*; D004497:Education, Dental / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010865:Pilot Projects; D015397:Program Evaluation; D014481:United States; D014584:User-Computer Interface