Basic teaching in microsurgery

Abstract

We summarize our 15 years of educational experience in the field of teaching microsurgery. The students can be divided into three groups: (1) medical students, (2) researchers, (3) medical doctors and specialists. Characteristics of our method include the following: activity, synchronism, video-assistance, self-controlling, individualization, analysis. The Furka microsurgical educational method, named after one of the authors, is 20 hours long (five 4-hour sessions). The first lesson allows students to become acquainted with the microsurgical instruments. The next lesson consists of learning the probe of layer-feeling. The third lesson is to learn how to produce stitches under the microscope. The fourth lesson includes arterial anastomosis preparation on fresh arterial pieces of animal origin. The fifth lesson means a quality change from previous classes, as practice is performed on living animals, generally rats. The teaching of microsurgical basics requires both patience and empathy. The teaching process is most successful if one teacher deals with a maximum of two students.

Learning microsurgical suturing and knotting techniques: comparative data

“…Instruction in suturing techniques has been part of our microsurgical training courses for many years. 10,11 In this article, we attempted to provide objective data about teaching techniques for microsurgical suturing, including typical errors and how to improve skills using tutor-based instructional sessions.…”

Entrenamiento microquirúrgico básico para realizar un modelo animal de alotrasplante compuesto vascularizado

“…Algunos de estos aspectos son la necesidad de tiempo, paciencia, motivación, tolerancia a la frustración y recursos entre otros 4,13,[27][28][29][30][31] . Si bien existen algunas publicaciones al respecto, aún no se ha desarrollado un currículo válido de entrenamiento para los especialistas que necesitan usar técnicas microquirúrgicas en su práctica diaria 29,[32][33][34][35][36] . Entre los diferentes esquemas de entrenamiento propuestos, está la simple exposición directa a procedimientos microquirúrgicos, sin embargo, esta opción, además de ser riesgosa para los pacientes, se reserva sólo a centros con alto volumen microquirúrgico.…”

Microsurgical training course for clinicians and scientists at a German University hospital: A 10‐year experience

“…9,11,12 However, living animal models are still needed and justified to simulate the clinical situation, once the participants have reached a high level of tissue control and security in performing vascular anastomoses. 2,13,14 We follow a stepwise training program, 15 starting with nonliving models where participants gain experiences in the use of optical aids, microsurgical instruments and techniques, and tissue manipulation, which reduces the number of required animals substantially. 16 The applied tissue models are easy accessible and provide a gradual simulation of the clinical situation.…”