Tag: surgery

Why Surgeons Suffer Injuries from Minimally Invasive Technique

Cynthia A. Lockley on

A research study by Adrian E. Park, M.D., chief of general surgery at the University of Maryland Medical Center (UMMC) and professor of surgery and vice chair of the Department of Surgery at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, found that 87 percent of laparoscopic surgeons have experienced physical symptoms or discomfort as a result of managing the unique surgical constraints associated with laparoscopic surgery.

A post on the UMMC blog in 2010 included a video where Dr. Park explains the challenges of performing minimally invasive surgery and how these challenges limit the surgeon's movements and impact his or her body both during and after the procedure in the video. The video also showed the Medical Center's usability lab.

[Update 20 Feb 2020: Unfortunately, the video (bit.ly/bXvFVh) is no longer available.]

Related Reports

"The ergonomics of women in surgery"

Authors: Erica Sutton, Myra Irvin, Craig Zeigler, Gyusung Lee, Adrian Park
Surgical Endoscopy volume 28, pages1051–1055(2014)
Date: Nov 14, 2013 (.pdf from ResearchGate.net)

Among surgeons who regularly perform minimally invasive surgery, as many as 87% report injuries or symptoms related to job performance. Operating room and instrument design have traditionally favored surgeons who are taller and who possess hands that are, in general, large and strong.

Women surgeons are experiencing more discomfort and treatment in their hands than male surgeons. Redesign of laparoscopic instrument handles and improvements to table height comprise the most promising solutions to these ergonomic challenges.

"Patients Benefit While Surgeons Suffer: An Impending Epidemic"

Presented at the American College of Surgeons 94th Annual Clinical Congress, San Francisco, CA, October 2008.
Authors: Adrian Park M.D.,FACS, Gyusung Lee Ph.D., Jacob Seagull Ph.D., Nora Meenaghan M.D., David Dexter M.D.
Department of Surgery, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD

"Surgeon symptoms, strain, and selections: Systematic review and meta-analysis of surgical ergonomics"

Authors: Chee-Chee H. Stuckya, Kate D. Cromwella, Rachel K. Vossa, Yi-Ju Chianga, Karin Woodmanb, Jeffrey E. Leea, Janice N. Cormier
Published by Elsevier, Ltd. on behalf of IJS Publishing Group, Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/BY-NC-ND/4.0/) (.pdf)

New ISO standard for spinal disc implants

Cynthia A. Lockley on

29 January 2008 International Organization for Standardization press release

A new ISO standard for spinal disc implants will help reduce suffering of back pain patients. The new standard will help ensure that spinal disc prostheses meet requirements for wear resistance, particularly important as once implanted these will need to absorb the impact from the body’s daily activities for years to come.

Medical surgery ISO 18192-1:2008 Implants for Surgery – Wear of Total Intervertebral Spinal Disc Prostheses – Part 1: Loading and Displacement Parameters for Wear Testing and Corresponding Environmental Conditions for Test [Withdrawn]

The primary users of this ISO standard will be medical device manufacturers and laboratories in public and private sectors, providing biomechanical testing services for medical devices. The estimated worldwide market size for artificial disc prostheses will exceed USD 1 billion by the year 2010.

The standard was replaced by ISO 18192-1:2011  Updated

The 2011 version was last reviewed and confirmed in 2016. Therefore, this version remains current. ISO 18192-1:2011
Implants for surgery — Wear of total intervertebral spinal disc prostheses — Part 1: Loading and displacement parameters for wear testing and corresponding environmental conditions for test  Updated