@Article{info:doi/10.2196/jmir.8046,
author="Perry, Suzanne
and Bridges, Susan M
and Zhu, Frank
and Leung, W Keung
and Burrow, Michael F
and Poolton, Jamie
and Masters, Rich SW",
title="Getting to the Root of Fine Motor Skill Performance in Dentistry: Brain Activity During Dental Tasks in a Virtual Reality Haptic Simulation",
journal="J Med Internet Res",
year="2017",
month="Dec",
day="12",
volume="19",
number="12",
pages="e371",
keywords="simulation; fNIRS; functional near-infrared spectroscopy; spectroscopy, near-infrared; virtual reality; psychomotor skills training; dentistry; education, medical",
abstract="Background: There is little evidence considering the relationship between movement-specific reinvestment (a dimension of personality which refers to the propensity for individuals to consciously monitor and control their movements) and working memory during motor skill performance. Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) measuring oxyhemoglobin demands in the frontal cortex during performance of virtual reality (VR) psychomotor tasks can be used to examine this research gap. Objective: The aim of this study was to determine the potential relationship between the propensity to reinvest and blood flow to the dorsolateral prefrontal cortices of the brain. A secondary aim was to determine the propensity to reinvest and performance during 2 dental tasks carried out using haptic VR simulators. Methods: We used fNIRS to assess oxygen demands in 24 undergraduate dental students during 2 dental tasks (clinical, nonclinical) on a VR haptic simulator. We used the Movement-Specific Reinvestment Scale questionnaire to assess the students' propensity to reinvest. Results: Students with a high propensity for movement-specific reinvestment displayed significantly greater oxyhemoglobin demands in an area associated with working memory during the nonclinical task (Spearman correlation, rs=.49, P=.03). Conclusions: This small-scale study suggests that neurophysiological differences are evident between high and low reinvesters during a dental VR task in terms of oxyhemoglobin demands in an area associated with working memory. ",
issn="1438-8871",
doi="10.2196/jmir.8046",
url="http://www.jmir.org/2017/12/e371/",
url="https://doi.org/10.2196/jmir.8046",
url="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29233801"
}