Beyond Traditional Training: Exploring the Benefits of Virtual Reality Simulator in Lumbar Pedicle Screw Insertion - A Randomized Controlled Trial.

INTRODUCTION: This study compares the effectiveness of Virtual Reality Simulators (VRS) and a saw bone model for learning lumbar pedicle screw insertion (LPSI) in neurosurgery. METHODOLOGY: A single-center, cross-sectional, randomized controlled laboratory investigation was conducted involving residents and fellows from a tertiary care referral hospital. Participants were divided into two groups (A and B). Group A performed three LPSI tasks: the first on a saw bone model, the second on VRS, and the third on another saw bone model. Group B completed two LPSI tasks, the first on a saw bone model and the second on another saw bone model. The accuracy of LPSI was evaluated through NCCT scans for the saw bone models, while the in-built application of VRS was utilized to check for accuracy of screw placement using the simulator. RESULTS: The study included 38 participants (19 in each group). Group A participants showed reduced mean entry point error (0.11 mm, p 0.024), increased mean purchase length (4.66 cm, p 0.007), and no cortical breaches (p 0.031) when placing the second saw bone model screw. Similar improvements were observed among group A participants in PGY 1-3 while placing the second saw bone model screws. CONCLUSIONS: VRS proves to be an invaluable tool for teaching complex neurosurgical skills, such as LPSI, to trainees. This technology investment can enhance the learning curve while maintaining patient safety.

Middle third falcine meningiomas-surgical nuances for cortical venous preservation.

PURPOSE: To improve postoperative outcome in middle third falcine meningiomas by cortical venous preservation. BACKGROUND: Falcine meningiomas arise from the falx and do not involve the superior sagittal sinus (SSS). Their complete resection is often associated with the risk of venous infarction in the eloquent cortex due to overlying superficial cortical veins on the tumors. METHOD: We report one case of middle third falcine meningioma, where we used the posterior interhemispheric corridor for tumor approach. CONCLUSION: Use of the posterior interhemispheric approach, carefully raised bone flap, along with sharp dissection and vein reinforcement using fibrin glue can help to preserve the cortical veins while resecting the falcine meningiomas.

Neurosurgery as a Top-Drawer Choice for Residency in India: Reality or Myth?

INTRODUCTION: This survey was conducted to explore the perceptions of undergraduate (UG) medical students regarding enrolling in a neurosurgical training program. The purpose was to understand' expectations, reasons, apprehensions, and variables influencing students' decisions to pursue a career in neurosurgery. The results shed light on students' perceptions and can help educational institutions and training programs draw in and encourage aspiring neurosurgeons. METHODS: A 35-point online questionnaire was created using Google Forms (Google LLC) after content and face validation and circulated using social media platforms among various public medical colleges across India. Responses were collected over a period of 3 months, from February 2023 to April 2023. A 5-point Likert scale was used to collect the responses wherever applicable. RESULTS: A total of 1042 respondents from 47 medical colleges completed the survey. The majority of the students were not exposed to neurosurgery during their UG program, but despite this, 60.1% (n = 627) were willing to consider it as their career option. Around 91.4% of the respondents perceived neurosurgery to be a challenging but prestigious specialty that has a long learning curve and the worst work-life balance when compared with other specialties. The majority of the respondents (strongly disagree = 24.3%, n = 253; disagree = 31.7%, n = 330) did not view neurosurgery as a male-dominated specialty. Most students preferred a 6-year training program over a 3-year program (P = 0.001) if their medical college had such a course. CONCLUSIONS: Our study reveals that although a majority of the UG students would like to join neurosurgery residency, there are significant barriers in the form of less exposure, negative perceptions, and apprehensions toward the branch. Enhancing medical students' awareness about neurosurgery necessitates the integration of hands-on workshops, simulation-based training, didactic lectures, and neurosurgery rotations into the UG curriculum.

Fusion of AI techniques to tackle COVID-19 pandemic: models, incidence rates, and future trends.

The COVID-19 pandemic is rapidly spreading across the globe and infected millions of people that take hundreds of thousands of lives. Over the years, the role of Artificial intelligence (AI) has been on the rise as its algorithms are getting more and more accurate and it is thought that its role in strengthening the existing healthcare system will be the most profound. Moreover, the pandemic brought an opportunity to showcase AI and healthcare integration potentials as the current infrastructure worldwide is overwhelmed and crumbling. Due to AI's flexibility and adaptability, it can be used as a tool to tackle COVID-19. Motivated by these facts, in this paper, we surveyed how the AI techniques can handle the COVID-19 pandemic situation and present the merits and demerits of these techniques. This paper presents a comprehensive end-to-end review of all the AI-techniques that can be used to tackle all areas of the pandemic. Further, we systematically discuss the issues of the COVID-19, and based on the literature review, we suggest their potential countermeasures using AI techniques. In the end, we analyze various open research issues and challenges associated with integrating the AI techniques in the COVID-19.

Blockchain for COVID-19: a comprehensive review.

The rampant and sudden outbreak of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus also called COVID-19 and its uncontrollable spread have led to a global crisis. COVID-19 is a highly contagious disease and the only way to fight with it is to follow social distancing and Non-Pharmaceutical Interventions (NPIs). Moreover, this virus is increasing exponentially day-by-day and a huge amount of data from this disease is also generated at the fast pace. So, there is a need to store, manage, and analyze this huge amount of data efficiently to get meaningful insights from it, which further helps medical professionals to tackle this global pandemic situation. Moreover, this data is to be passed through an open channel, i.e., the Internet, which opens the doors for the intruders to perform some malicious activities. Blockchain (BC) emerges as a technology that can manage the data in an efficient, transparent manner and also preserve the privacy of all the stakeholders. It can also aid in transaction authorization and verification in the supply chain or payments. Motivated by these facts, in this paper, we present a comprehensive review on the adoption of BC to tackle COVID-19 situations. We also present a case study on BC-based digital vaccine passports and analyzed its complexity. Finally, we analyzed the research challenges and future directions in this emerging area.