Preoperative Immersive Virtual Reality (iVR) Applied to Percutaneous Nephrolithotomy: A Prospective Randomized Clinical Study of Surgical Planning and Clinical Outcomes

Percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL) is the procedure of choice for the management of complex or large renal stones. A major challenge for the surgeon, however, is the need to assimilate the nearly 2000 static images from a CT scan into a functional mental image to enable surgical planning. Accordingly, we investigated the potential of immersive virtual reality (iVR) to enhance surgical planning and its impact on the outcomes among patients undergoing PCNL.