VCath is an iPad application developed by Bangor University in Great Britain, and its purpose is to help future neurosurgeons insert a catheter into a virtual brain. The medical procedure is called ventricular catheterization and it involves inserting a needle inside the brain to drain the fluid that collects in its ventricles. The application was designed to help students learn how to do this procedure correctly, so that when they actually have to do it, they will have a vague idea about it.
VCath is a surgical education tool for cannulating the lateral ventricles, designed specifically for tablet devices. Its aim is to guide a neurosurgical trainee through the steps of positioning and inserting a catheter into the brain of a 3D virtual patient. One skill that trainees in neurosurgery need to gain early in their training is an appreciation of the ventricular system in the brain, and how to cannulate it in an emergency. The flow of cerebrospinal fluid can be obstructed in the ventricles by many pathological processes leading to a dangerous condition known as hydrocephalus. The pressure inside the ventricles can rise leading to loss of consciousness. The ventricular system can be cannulated in the operating theatre, fluid drained and the potentially lethal rise in pressure relieved. This procedure is commonly performed in neurosurgical departments.
In general, VCath is an excellent new proof of how tablets can be used for educational purposes, in recent years more and more application developers are taking advantage of this to bring to the market systems that help pupils and students on a daily basis. The application is available for free in the App Store, so you can download/try it yourself.
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VCath
Free
Description: VCath is a surgical education tool for cannulating the lateral ventricles, designed specifically for tablet devices. Its aim is to guide a neurosurgical trainee through the steps of positioning and inserting a catheter into the brain of a 3D virtual patient...
