Immersive technology in ophthalmology education: a systematic review.

Background: Despite the increasing use of immersive technology (IT) in ophthalmology, the effectiveness of this approach compared to other teaching practices is unclear. This systematic review aimed to determine the value of IT to teach students ophthalmic skills and whether it can supplement or replace conventional teaching practices.
Methods: A systematic search was performed of CENTRAL, MEDLINE, EMBASE, ERIC and PsychINFO databases. Randomised controlled trials comparing IT interventions versus (1) no training, (2) standard training, (3) different types of IT interventions, (4) different doses of IT interventions were eligible for inclusion.
Results: Seven trials involving 177 participants were included. IT offered some benefit compared to standard training as most trials demonstrated evidence of learning represented by composite performance score and performance time. Repetitive training with IT displayed similar results.
Conclusion: IT appears to improve the ophthalmic skill of healthcare trainees and should be considered as a supplement to training. © Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2021. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.