A Novel Approach to Surgical Instructions for Scrub Nurses by Using See-Through-Type Head-Mounted Display.

In order to facilitate assists in surgical procedure, it is important for scrub nurses to understand the operation procedure and to share the operation status with attending surgeons. The potential utility of head-mounted display as a new imaging monitor has been proposed in the medical field. This study prospectively evaluated the usefulness of see-through-type head-mounted display as a novel intraoperative instructional tool for scrub nurses. From January to March 2014, scrub nurses who attended gasless laparoendoscopic single-port radical nephrectomy and radical prostatectomy wore the monocular see-through-type head-mounted display (AiRScouter; Brother Industries Ltd, Nagoya, Japan) displaying the instruction of the operation procedure through a crystal panel in front of the eye. Following the operation, the participants completed an anonymous questionnaire, which evaluated the image quality of the head-mounted display, the helpfulness of the head-mounted display to understand the operation procedure, and adverse effects caused by the head-mounted display. Fifteen nurses were eligible for the analysis. The intraoperative use of the head-mounted display could help scrub nurses to understand the surgical procedure and to hand out the instruments for the operation with no major head-mounted-display wear-related adverse event. This novel approach to support scrub nurses will help facilitate technical and nontechnical skills during surgery.