The current state of medical simulation in interventional cardiology: a clinical document from the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Intervention's (SCAI) Simulation Committee.

OBJECTIVES To assess the current use and application of simulators in interventional cardiology. BACKGROUND Despite a paucity of data on the efficacy of simulation in medicine, cardiovascular simulation training is now a mandated part of cardiovascular fellowship training. Additionally, simulators have been endorsed by the Food and Drug Administration as a way to teach physicians new and novel procedures. We sought to establish the current use of simulators in cardiovascular medicine. METHODS A systematic review was done of available training programs, and currently existing data regarding simulation training. A panel of experts was convened to review this data and provide recommendations as how simulation should be used in the field of interventional cardiology. RESULTS This document provides a comprehensive review of the current state of simulation and how we as a society must formulate well validated studies to more closely examine and explore how this technology can be further studied and validated. CONCLUSIONS Simulation will likely take on a larger role in cardiovascular training and maintenance of certification, but at the current time lacks a large body of evidence for its use.