title: Does a 3D Image Improve Laparoscopic Motor Skills?
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To quantitatively determine whether a three-dimensional (3D) image improves laparoscopic performance compared with a two-dimensional (2D) image.
  
  
  METHODS
  This is a prospective study with two groups of participants: novices (5) and experts (5). Individuals within each group undertook a validated laparoscopic task on a box simulator, alternating between 2D and a 3D laparoscopic image until they had repeated the task five times with each imaging modality. A dedicated motion capture camera was used to determine the time taken to complete the task (seconds) and instrument distance traveled (meters).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Among the experts, the mean time taken to perform the task on the 3D image was significantly quicker than on the 2D image, 40.2 seconds versus 51.2 seconds, P < .0001. Among the novices, the mean task time again was significantly quicker on the 3D image, 56.4 seconds versus 82.7 seconds, P < .0001. There was no significant difference in the mean time it took a novice to perform the task using a 3D camera compared with an expert on a 2D camera, 56.4 seconds versus 51.3 seconds, P = .3341.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The use of a 3D image confers a significant performance advantage over a 2D camera in quantitatively measured laparoscopic skills for both experts and novices. The use of a 3D image appears to improve a novice's performance to the extent that it is not statistically different from an expert using a 2D image.
authors.affiliation: 1 Alder Hey Children's Hospital , Liverpool, United Kingdom .
authors.forename: Semiu Eniola
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Folaranmi
authors.affiliation: 2 Royal Hospital for Sick Children , Edinburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom .
authors.forename: Roland W
authors.initials: RW
authors.lastname: Partridge
authors.affiliation: 3 Western General Hospital , Edinburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom .
authors.forename: Paul M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Brennan
authors.affiliation: 1 Alder Hey Children's Hospital , Liverpool, United Kingdom .
authors.forename: Iain A M
authors.initials: IA
authors.lastname: Hennessey
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002983:Clinical Competence; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D021621:Imaging, Three-Dimensional; D010535:Laparoscopy; D008297:Male; D009048:Motor Skills; D011446:Prospective Studies; D013996:Time and Motion Studies