All those years on the couch playing Nintendo and PlayStation appear to be paying off for surgeons.
Researchers found that doctors who spent at least three hours a week playing video games, made about 37 percent fewer mistakes in laparoscopic surgery, and performed the task 27 percent faster than their counterparts who did not play video games.
Using a tiny camera and instruments controlled by joysticks outside the body, Laparoscopic surgery is performed on just about any part of the body, from the appendix to the colon and gall bladder.
The minimally intrusive surgery involves making tiny keyhole incisions and inserting a mini-video camera that sends images to an external video screen.
The surgical tools are remote-controlled by the surgeon watching the screen.
Surgeons can now practice their techniques through video simulations.
