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Abstract

Surgical Medicine Open Access Journal

The Effects of Sleep Deprivation, Caffeine, and Alcohol on Simulated Neurosurgical Performance

  • Open or Close Paramita Das1 and Daniel J Guillaume2*

    1Department of Neurosurgery, Cleveland Clinic, USA

    2Department of Neurosurgery, University of Minnesota, USA

    *Corresponding author: Daniel J Guillaume, Department of Neurosurgery, University of Minnesota, D429 Mayo Memorial Building, 420 Delaware Street S.E., MMC96, Minneapolis, MN 55455

Submission: January 22, 2018; Published: February 06, 2018

DOI: 10.31031/SMOAJ.2018.01.000514

ISSN: 2578-0379
Volume1 Issue3

Abstract

Objectives: We hypothesized that sleep deprivation, caffeine intake, and alcohol consumption the night prior to simulated microneurosurgery may impact performance on a virtual reality neurosurgical simulator.

Patients and Methods: After IRB approval, trainees practiced a simulated bimanual arachnoid dissection microsurgical task on the NeuroTouch Neurosurgical simulator (National Research Council, Canada) until it was mastered. For each participant, the task was repeated several times following sleep deprivation, caffeine intake and the morning after a social gathering where blood alcohol content (BAC) was measured. Each time the task was performed, the participants documented variables on a questionnaire. Performance metrics included: task duration, left or right hand excessive force, number of incorrect or correct fibers cut, and overall score based on several measurements.

Results: Of eight participants, 4 consumed alcohol (average BAC 0.14). There was no statistical difference in performance metrics in the alcohol versus non-alcohol groups. The group that slept greater versus less than six hours had significantly higher right hand excessive force (3.08 ± 0.62s versus 1.19 ± 0.17s, P=0.0012). Those that slept less versus more than six hours cut more correct (12.45 ± 0.54 versus 14.86 ± 0.18 respectively, P<0.001) and incorrect (0.98 ± 0.16 versus 1.59 ± 0.21 respectively, P=0.03) fibers. Participants consumed an average of 2.6 cups of coffee 4.1 hours prior to simulator use. The average sleep in the caffeinated versus non-caffeinated groups was 4.9 versus 5 hours. The use of right hand excessive force was higher in the non-caffeinated group (3.04 ± 0.65s versus 1.27 ± 0.16s respectively, P=0.003). Other metrics were similar between groups.

Conclusion: Caffeine intake and sleep deprivation may change performance on the surgical simulator. The effects of alcohol consumption are not clear from our study. We acknowledge that simulator performance may not predict operative performance.

Keywords: Neurosurgical simulation; Virtual reality simulation; Neurosurgical education; Sleep deprivation; Neurosurgery training

Abbreviations: BAC: Blood Alcohol Content; ACGME: Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education; VR: Virtual Reality; CUSA: Cavitron Ultrasonic Surgical Aspirator

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