Role of simulation in kidney stone disease: A systematic review of literature trends in the 26 years

Background: Minimally invasive techniques for treatment of urinary stones requires expertise, experience and endoscopic skills. Simulators provide a low-stress and low-risk environment while providing a realistic set-up and training opportunities. Aim: To report the publication trend of 'simulation in urolithiasis' over the last 26 years. Methods: Research of all published papers on "Simulation in Urolithiasis" was performed through PubMed database over the last 26 years, from January 1997 to December 2022. Papers were labelled and divided in three subgroups: (1) Training papers; (2) Clinical simulation application or surgical procedures; and (3) Diagnostic radiology simulation. Each subgroup was then divided into two 13-year time periods to compare and identify the contrast of different decades: period-1 (1997-2009) and period-2 (2010-2022). Results: A total of 168 articles published on the application of simulation in urolithiasis over the last 26 years (training: n = 94, surgical procedures: n = 66, and radiology: n = 8). The overall number of papers published in simulation in urolithiasis was 35 in Period-1 and 129 in Period-2, an increase of +269% (P = 0.0002). Each subgroup shows a growing trend of publications from Period-1 to Period-2: training papers +279% (P = 0.001), surgical simulations +264% (P = 0.0180) and radiological simulations +200% (P = 0.2105). Conclusion: In the last decades there has been a step up of papers regarding training protocols with the aid of various simulation devices, with simulators now a part of training programs. With the development of 3D-printed and high-fidelity models, simulation for surgical procedure planning and patients counseling is also a growing field and this trend will continue to rise in the next few years.