The current status of ergonomics in thoracoscopy and its improvement

Abstract

Thoracoscopy is one kind of the minimal invasive surgery and is developing quickly in recent years.Comparing to traditional open surgery, thoracoscopy brings less surgical trauma, lower mortality rates, and shorter hospital stay. Ergonomics is a science focusing on the interactions between the worker and the environment. While thoracoscopy benefits patients, it brings unnegligible damage and burden to doctor s physical health. Inappropriate set of instruments, incorrect surgery postures and unsuitable instrumental design brings extra burden to the surgeons. Here we make a review of related literatures to investigate the current ergonomic status in thoracoscopy. This review summerizes the ergonomic problems during thoracoscopy, exhibites the solutions and innovations, aiming to solve the current ergonomic problems and provide directions for future research. \n \n \nKey words: \nThoracoscopy;\xa0Fatigue;\xa0Ergonomics;\xa0Improvement