"The dV-Trainer has face, content and construct validity as a virtual reality simulator for the da Vinci Surgical System...The dV-Trainer may become a valuable training simulator in robotic surgery."
Dr. Ali Moinzadeh et al.
Director of Robotic Surgery Institute of Urology
Lahey Clinic
The Gold Standard for Robotic Simulation
Mimic’s dV-Trainer™ was the first commercially available simulator for robotic surgery. The first prototype was installed at Indiana University’s Department of Urology in February of 2007, and it remains the only robotic simulator that has been independently validated in published studies.
Importance of Validation
At Mimic, we understand that independent validation is of utmost importance to our customers. We are proud to say that the dV-Trainer has demonstrated face, content, construct, and concurrent validity in multiple studies. Recent studies have concluded that the dV-Trainer is comparable to dry-lab training on the da Vinci® robot (concurrent validity), and efforts are underway to assess the predictive validity of the simulator.
Published Validation Studies
"The Virtual Reality Simulator dV-Trainer® is a Valid Assessment Tool for Robotic Surgical Skills", Surgical Endoscopy, April 2012, by C. Perrenot, M. Perez, N. Tran,
J-P. Jehl, J.Felblinger
.png){kind=small}
C.Perrenot,, University of Nancy, France
"Validation Study of a Virtual Reality Robotic Simulator - Role as an Assessment Tool?", Journal of Urology, March 2012, by J. Lee, D. Kerbl, P. Mucksavage, M. Etafy, V. Huynh, E. McDougall
J.Y. Lee, University of California, Irvine
"Validating the Use of the Mimic dV-Trainer for Robotic Surgery Skill Acquisition Among Urology Residents", Urology, October 2011, by R. Korets, A.C. Mues, J.A. Graversen, M. Gupta, M.C. Benson, K.L. Cooper, J. Landman, K.K. Badani
R. Korets, Columbia University
"Face, Content and Construct Validity of a Novel Robotic Surgery Simulator", Journal of Urology, September 2011, by A. Hung, P. Zehnder, M. Patil, J Cai, C. Ng, M. Aron, I. Gill, M. Desai
A.J. Hung, University of Southern California
“Validation Study of a 3D Virtual Robot Simulator as a Robot Surgery Training System", Journal of Korean Colorectal Surgery , April 2011, by S. Kim, J. Cho
"Does Training on a Virtual Reality Robotic Simulator Improve Performance on the da Vinci ® Surgical System?”, Journal of Endourology, Volume 24, Number 3, March 2010, by M. Lerner, M. Ayalew, W. Peine,, C. Sundaram
M. Lerner, Indiana University
“Face, Content, and Construct Validity of dV-Trainer, a Novel Virtual Reality Simulator for Robotic Surgery", Journal of Urology, Volume 73, Issue 6, June 2009, by P. Kenney, M. Wszolek, J. Gould, J. Libertino, A. Moinzadeh
P.Kenney, Lahey Clinic
“Validation of a Novel Virtual Reality Robotic Simulator", Journal of Endourology, Volume 23, Number 3, March 2009, by A. Sethi, W. Peine, Y. Mohammadi, C. Sundaram
A. Sethi, Indiana University
“Initial validation of a virtual-reality robotic simulator”, Journal of Robotic Surgery, Volume 2, Number 3, September 2008, by T. Lendvay, P. Casale, R. Sweet, C. Peters
T. Lendvay, Unviversity of Washington &
The Children's Hospital
Pending Validation Studies
Akron General Hospital - Concurrent Validity for Skills Retention
Indiana University - Predictive Validity
Johns Hopkins University - Training Assessment Across Training Platforms (dV-Trainer, Skills Simulator, Dry Labs)
New York University, University of Illinois at Chicago, University Hospital of Nancy (France), Uniformed Services University - Optimum Curriculum for Accelerated Learning
University Medical Centre Utrecht (Netherlands), Lund University (Sweden) - Face, Content, Construct Validity
University of Washington - Value of Surgical Warm-Up
Video Presentations of Validation Studies
