TY  - JOUR
AU  - Perry, Suzanne
AU  - Bridges, Susan M
AU  - Zhu, Frank
AU  - Leung, W Keung
AU  - Burrow, Michael F
AU  - Poolton, Jamie
AU  - Masters, Rich SW
PY  - 2017
DA  - 2017/12/12
TI  - Getting to the Root of Fine Motor Skill Performance in Dentistry: Brain Activity During Dental Tasks in a Virtual Reality Haptic Simulation
JO  - J Med Internet Res
SP  - e371
VL  - 19
IS  - 12
KW  - simulation
KW  - fNIRS
KW  - functional near-infrared spectroscopy
KW  - spectroscopy, near-infrared
KW  - virtual reality
KW  - psychomotor skills training
KW  - dentistry
KW  - education, medical
AB  - 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. 
SN  - 1438-8871
UR  - http://www.jmir.org/2017/12/e371/
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2196/jmir.8046
UR  - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29233801
DO  - 10.2196/jmir.8046
ID  - info:doi/10.2196/jmir.8046
ER  -