title: Face and content validation of a Virtual Translumenal Endoscopic Surgery Trainer (VTEST™).
abstract: Natural orifice translumenal endoscopic surgery (NOTES) is an emerging surgical paradigm, where peritoneal access is achieved through one of the natural orifices of the body. It is being reported as a safe and feasible surgical technique with significantly reduced external scarring. Virtual Translumenal Endoscopic Surgical Trainer (VTEST™) is the first virtual reality simulator for the NOTES. The VTEST™ simulator was developed to train surgeons in the hybrid transvaginal NOTES cholecystectomy procedure. The initial version of the VTEST™ simulator underwent face validation at the 2013 Natural Orifice Surgery Consortium for Assessment and Research (NOSCAR) summit. Several areas of improvement were identified as a result, and the corresponding modifications were implemented in the simulator. This manuscript outlines the results of the subsequent evaluation study, performed in order to assess the face and content validity of the latest VTEST™ simulator.
  
  
  
  Twelve subjects participated in an institutional review board-approved study that took place at the 2014 NOSCAR summit. Six of the 12 subjects, who are experts with NOTES experience, were used for face and content validation. The subjects performed the hybrid transvaginal NOTES cholecystectomy procedure on VTEST™ that included identifying the Calot's triangle, clipping and cutting the cystic duct/artery, and detaching the gallbladder. The subjects then answered five-point Likert scale feedback questionnaires for face and content validity.
  
  
  
  Overall, subjects rated 12/15 questions as 3.0 or greater (60 %), for face validity questions regarding the realism of the anatomical features, interface, and the tasks. Subjects also highly rated the usefulness of the simulator in learning the fundamental NOTES technical skills (3.50 ± 0.84). Content validity results indicate a high level of usefulness of the VTEST™ for training prior to operating room experience (4.17 ± 0.75).
authors.affiliation: Center for Modeling, Simulation and Imaging in Medicine (CeMSIM), Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, 110, 8th Street, Troy, NY, 12180, USA.
authors.forename: Denis
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Dorozhkin
authors.affiliation: Center for Modeling, Simulation and Imaging in Medicine (CeMSIM), Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, 110, 8th Street, Troy, NY, 12180, USA.
authors.forename: Arun
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Nemani
authors.affiliation: Gastrointestinal Surgery, Yale School of Medicine, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA.
authors.forename: Kurt
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Roberts
authors.affiliation: Center for Modeling, Simulation and Imaging in Medicine (CeMSIM), Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, 110, 8th Street, Troy, NY, 12180, USA.
authors.forename: Woojin
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Ahn
authors.affiliation: Computer Science Department, University of Central Arkansas, Conway, AR, USA.
authors.forename: Tansel
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Halic
authors.affiliation: Center for Modeling, Simulation and Imaging in Medicine (CeMSIM), Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, 110, 8th Street, Troy, NY, 12180, USA.
authors.forename: Saurabh
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Dargar
authors.affiliation: Biomedical, Industrial and Human Factors Engineering, College of Engineering and Computer Science, Wright State University, Dayton, OH, USA.
authors.forename: Jinling
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Biomedical, Industrial and Human Factors Engineering, College of Engineering and Computer Science, Wright State University, Dayton, OH, USA.
authors.forename: Caroline G L
authors.initials: CG
authors.lastname: Cao
authors.affiliation: Center for Modeling, Simulation and Imaging in Medicine (CeMSIM), Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, 110, 8th Street, Troy, NY, 12180, USA.
authors.forename: Ganesh
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Sankaranarayanan
authors.affiliation: Center for Modeling, Simulation and Imaging in Medicine (CeMSIM), Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, 110, 8th Street, Troy, NY, 12180, USA. des@rpi.edu.
authors.forename: Suvranu
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: De
mesh_terms: D002763:Cholecystectomy / Q000193:education* / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D057605:Natural Orifice Endoscopic Surgery / Q000193:education* / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods; D000066908:Simulation Training / Q000379:methods*; D014481:United States; D014584:User-Computer Interface; D014621:Vagina / Q000601:surgery
keywords: NOTES; Natural orifice surgery; Surgical performance metrics; Surgical training; Virtual surgical simulation