Forskning

January 19, 2015

Crossover study of the effects of coffee consumption on simulated laparoscopy skills

V Quan et al, 2015, Crossover study of the effects of coffee consumption on simulated laparoscopy skills, International Journal of Surgery, published online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT:

Aims: To observe the effect of caffeine on performing laparoscopic skills in novices in a simulated setting.

Background:  Coffee is consumed almost ubiquitously by surgeons not just as a stimulant but also socially in the well-rested individual. It’s therefore worth investigating its potentially negative effect on performance of surgical skills as it is known that coffee has psychomotor effects.

Methods: This is a single-blind crossover study in which 31 novices were tested under three different conditions: decaffeinated, 100mg caffeine and 200mg caffeine. Candidates were asked to perform 3 repetitions of task 3, 6, 7 and 8 using the Lap Mentor™ (Simbionix®). Outcomes measured were completion time, accuracy, number of movements and total path length. The candidates were crossed over to the other caffeine doses on a different day.

Results: 20 candidates completed the study, mean age 21.3 years, with 10 males and 10 females. Candidates performed tasks 7 and 8 faster in the decaffeinated group than the caffeinated groups with significant differences between decaffeinated and 100mg caffeine (p-value=0.001, 0.019 respectively) and decaffeinated and 200mg in task 8(p-value=0.042). Total path length was significantly less in the decaffeinated group in tasks 7 and 8 and total number of movements was less in tasks 3, 7 and 8.

Conclusion: Caffeine had no marked effect on accuracy, but had a negative effect on task economy (hand movements, total path length and completion time).