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The Virtual Cadaver Lab: An Innovative Platform to Supplement Medical Education

Award Information
Agency: Department of Health and Human Services
Branch: National Institutes of Health
Contract: 1R43RR024103-01A1
Agency Tracking Number: RR024103
Amount: $100,000.00
Phase: Phase I
Program: SBIR
Solicitation Topic Code: N/A
Solicitation Number: N/A
Timeline
Solicitation Year: 2007
Award Year: 2007
Award Start Date (Proposal Award Date): N/A
Award End Date (Contract End Date): N/A
Small Business Information
TACTUS TECHNOLOGIES, INC. 2350 NORTH FOREST RD.
GETZVILLE, NY 14068
United States
DUNS: 102377582
HUBZone Owned: No
Woman Owned: No
Socially and Economically Disadvantaged: No
Principal Investigator
 KEVIN CHUGH
 (716) 206-8463
 CHUGH@TACTUSTECH.COM
Business Contact
 JAMES MAYROSE
Phone: (716) 206-8463
Email: MAYROSE@TACTUSTECH.COM
Research Institution
N/A
Abstract

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Cadaver dissection is a critical exercise in medical education. In addition to the 60,000 plus medical students who participate in cadaver dissection, there are hundreds of thousands of other health care professionals and millions of high school students who would benefit from the exploratory learning experience that cadaver dissection provides. However, only 17,500 cadavers are available annually, and ethical and safety issues prevent such widespread use of what would otherwise be an invaluable educational experience in Anatomy. Over the past decade, personal computers have achieved remarkable performance milestones, driven by the gaming industry. An opportunity exists to develop a Virtual Reality anatomical exploration simulator that combines the best of virtual surgery and multimedia at an affordable cost and brings this invaluable experience to the masses. This proposal describes the Virtual Cadaver Lab, a 3D, real time, interactive exploratory application that allows students to explore the human anatomy the same way that medical students explore physical cadavers. VR offers distinct advantages over physical cadavers, such as the ability to erase mistakes, the ability to explore multiple specimens, the ability to record and playback dissections for assessment, and the ability to augment the experience with tissue and organ specific information. In the Virtual Cadaver Lab simulation, a student will be able to view a human body from any angle, touch it with a virtual probe, and cut open the skin for exploration. A low cost touch based input device is proposed that conveys the sensation of holding a scalpel while performing this dissection. The proposed Phase 1 research (to be followed by Phase II) has tremendous implications, not only for medical students, but for biology students at the K-12 and undergraduate levels. Medical students can practice on multiple cadavers as a supplement to their lab experience without the need to be present in a cadaver lab, and without regulatory or ethical issues. Other science students can gain valuable insight into the human anatomy by running the software in a schools' computer lab or on their home computer.

* Information listed above is at the time of submission. *

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