Teaching ultrasound-guided peripheral venous catheter placement through immersive virtual reality

Immersive virtual reality (IVR)-based training is gaining ground as an educational tool in healthcare. When combined with well-established educational methods, IVR can potentially increase competency and autonomy in ultrasound (US)-guided peripheral venous cannulation. The aim of this study was to examine the impact of adding IVR training to a course in US-guided peripheral venous cannulation. Methods: Medical students (n = 19) from the University of Southern Denmark with no former standardized US education were recruited to voluntarily participate in a pilot study, designed as a randomized controlled trial. The primary outcome was the proportion of successful peripheral venous cannulations on a phantom. Secondary outcomes included the proportion of surface punctures on the phantom and procedure time. Participants received e-learning on the basic US before randomization to either IVR (n = 10) or no further training (n = 9). The additional IVR training comprised 10 virtual scenarios for US-guided peripheral venous catheter (PVC) placement. Students were subsequently evaluated in peripheral venous cannulation by a blinded assessor. Results: The proportion of successful peripheral venous cannulations was significantly higher in the IVR group ( P  ≤ .001). The proportions of successful cannulations were significantly higher in the IVR group compared to the control group for the 1st and 2nd PVC ( P  = .011, P  = .023), but not for the 3rd PVC ( P  = .087). Similar results were found for the proportion of surface punctures (1st: P  ≤ .001, 2nd: P  = .001, and 3rd: P  = .114). No significant differences in procedure times were found between the groups. Conclusion: This pilot study showed that adding an IVR-based training simulation to an existing e-learning curriculum significantly increased the learning efficacy of US-guided PVC placement for medical students.