• Christian Colcuc, Marco Miersbach, Miguel Cienfuegos, Niklas Grüneweller, Thomas Vordemvenne, and Dirk Wähnert.
• Bielefeld University, Medical School and University Medical Center OWL, Protestant Hospital of the Bethel Foundation, Department of Trauma and Orthopaedic Surgery, Burgsteig 13, 33617, Bielefeld, Germany.
• Arch Orthop Trauma Surg. 2024 May 4.

IntroductionPreoperative planning is a critical step in the success of any complex surgery. The pur-pose of this study is to evaluate the advantage of VR glasses in surgical planning of complex tibial plateau fractures compared to CT planning.Materials And MethodsFive orthopedic surgeons performed preoperative planning for 30 fractures using either conventional CT slices or VR visualization with a VR headset. Planning was performed in a randomized order with a 3-month interval between planning sessions. A standardized questionnaire assessed planned operative time, planning time, fracture classification and understanding, and surgeons' subjective confidence in surgical planning.ResultsThe mean planned operative time of 156 (SD 47) minutes was significantly lower (p < 0.001) in the VR group than in the CT group (172 min; SD 44). The mean planning time in the VR group was 3.48 min (SD 2.4), 17% longer than in the CT group (2.98 min, SD 1.9; p = 0.027). Relevant parameters influencing planning time were surgeon experience (-0.61 min) and estimated complexity of fracture treatment (+ 0.65 min).ConclusionThe use of virtual reality for surgical planning of complex tibial plateau fractures resulted in significantly shorter planned operative time, while planning time was longer compared to CT planning. After VR planning, more surgeons felt (very) well prepared for surgery.© 2024. The Author(s).

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