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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Surg.

Sec. Neurosurgery

Volume 12 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fsurg.2025.1573333

This article is part of the Research TopicInnovations and Challenges in Surgical EducationView all 11 articles

Comparison of Operative Microscope and Exoscope for execution of microanastomoses on an artificial model

Provisionally accepted
Tommaso CalloniTommaso Calloni1*Giovanni CaroneGiovanni Carone2Marilou CavaliereMarilou Cavaliere3Camilla De LaurentisCamilla De Laurentis4,5,6Martino BussaMartino Bussa4Laura AntoliniLaura Antolini4Federico NicolosiFederico Nicolosi4Giorgio Giovanni CarrabbaGiorgio Giovanni Carrabba1,4Marco Maria FontanellaMarco Maria Fontanella7Marco CenzatoMarco Cenzato8Francesco DiMecoFrancesco DiMeco10,9Francesco AcerbiFrancesco Acerbi11,12,2Carlo Giorgio GiussaniCarlo Giorgio Giussani1,4
  • 1Neurosurgery, Fondazione IRCCS San Gerardo dei Tintori, Monza, Italia, Monza, Italy
  • 2Department of Neurosurgery, IRCCS Carlo Besta Neurological Institute Foundation, Milano, Lombardy, Italy
  • 3Neurosurgery, ASST Fatebenefratelli - Sacco, Milan, Lombardy, Italy
  • 4School of Medicine and Surgery, University of Milano- Bicocca, Milan, Lombardy, Italy
  • 5Groupement Hospitalier Est, Hospices Civils de Lyon, Lyon, Rhône-Alpes, France
  • 6Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Lyon, Rhône-Alpes, France
  • 7Division of Medical Oncology, Department of Medical and Surgical Specialties, Radiological Sciences and Public Health, University of Brescia, Brescia, Lombardy, Italy
  • 8Department of Neuroradiology, ASST Great Metropolitan Hospital Niguarda, Milan, Lombardy, Italy
  • 9Department of Pathophysiology and Transplantation, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery, University of Milan, Milan, Lombardy, Italy
  • 10Department of Neurosurgery, Johns Hopkins Medical School, Baltimore, United States
  • 11Department of Translational Research and New Technologies in Medicine and Surgery, University of Pisa, Pisa, Tuscany, Italy
  • 12Neurosurgery Department, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria Pisana, Pisa, Italy

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While the improved ergonomics, depth of field, and freedom of movement offered by Exoscopes compared to Operative Microscopes are well established, their value in surgical education and training is often mentioned but remains poorly documented.In this study, we used a using a slightly modified version of the NOMAT score to compare the microvascular anastomoses on an artificial model made using traditional Operative Microscopes and the Orbeye 4K 3D Exoscope. Each participant performed the task 3 times.The results showed that microscope users initially scored higher in several aspects, likely due to greater prior familiarity with the device. However, by the third repetition, the differences were no longer significant, demonstrating that the Exoscope is not inferior to the traditional Microscope in laboratory training. Moreover, the Exoscope group exhibited a faster learning curve for specific skills, highlighting its potential for early adoption by young surgeons.

Keywords: Microanastomoses, microvascular training, Education, Residents, Learning Curve, 3D exoscope, microscope

Received: 08 Feb 2025; Accepted: 04 Jun 2025.

Copyright: © 2025 Calloni, Carone, Cavaliere, De Laurentis, Bussa, Antolini, Nicolosi, Carrabba, Fontanella, Cenzato, DiMeco, Acerbi and Giussani. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

* Correspondence: Tommaso Calloni, Neurosurgery, Fondazione IRCCS San Gerardo dei Tintori, Monza, Italia, Monza, Italy

Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

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