SIMQUEST INTERNATIONAL, LLC — Department of Health and Human Services SBIR Phase I: NHLBI

Description

DESCRIPTION provided by applicant SimQuest proposes to design a prototype simulator for endovascular access and conduit upsizing that provides the most realistic training available thus improving proficiency and reducing risk to patients It will overcome the shortcomings of existing simulators contain biofidelic haptics and novel metrics and allow repeated practice so that proficiency is clearly defined and attainable The goal is to provide trainees with a technologically advanced solution that allows development and practice of endovascular access conduit upsizing with accurately simulated tools and realistic haptic feel Unlike other trainers the proposed simulator will start at needle puncture move seamlessly into guidewire insertion through the just inserted needle and then to the over guidewire upsizing of the conduit catheter The simulator will be built with an innovative combination of D printed physical trainer elements augmented reality AR physics based simulation and haptics hardware interfaces To facilitate expansion to other procedures it will be developed using SimQuestandapos s open source platform OpenSurgSim During Phase I the project team will work with leading endovascular surgery experts to determine feasibility and develop task analysis training goals and metrics for the endovascular access tasks that are shared across specialties They will also draft functional and performance specifications that will help drive the engineering design Next the team will design the hardware for a novel two part endovascular access trainer that covers needle insertion and conduit upsizing and manipulating off the shelf tools sheath catheter and guidewire from insertion location to target site Long range goals include completion by the end of Phase II of a state of the art prototype endovascular surgery trainer that is ready for validation field testing and productization This project will result in the first simulator to ofer complete training in endovascular access and conduit upsizing simulating actual tasks in real life fashion It will improve clinical practice by teaching endovascular access use of guidewires catheters and conduit upsizing as a seamless process providing accurate haptic feel through an innovative design using clinical metrics defined by SMEs and containing a tissue phantom mannequin providing sense of touch and AR for visual enhancements Specific pathologies will be able to be incorporated using a virtual reality VR anatomical component PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE The enhanced endovascular training that will result from this Randamp D effort promises to reduce the disproportionate number of adverse events associated with vascular surgery and thus decrease patient risk Increased safety and better outcomes resulting from better trained surgeons and others who perform endovascular surgery will result in improved patient outcomes and reduced costs