Immersive 360° video fails to beat standard teaching in lumbar puncture exam trial

Medical students preparing for a lumbar puncture exam learned the procedure just as well from a standard lecture or a 2D video as they did from an immersive 360-degree video, according to a randomized controlled trial conducted at Grenoble Alpes University and published in BMC Medical Education.

All three methods were aimed at preparing students for an Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) station on lumbar puncture, a technically demanding procedure that requires dedicated training.

Performance was measured with a standardized OSCE lumbar puncture station score, and anxiety was assessed with the State Trait Anxiety Inventory, administered before the intervention and again before the OSCE. The researchers found no statistically significant differences between the groups in either performance (p = 0.180) or change in anxiety (p = 0.456), although the immersive video group did achieve a slightly higher mean score.

A subgroup of students in the virtual reality arm also took part in semi-structured interviews for a qualitative analysis. These interviews suggested a better user experience, increased motivation, and a perception of added value among students who trained with the immersive content.

The authors conclude that while the quantitative results did not demonstrate clear superiority for any of the three teaching modalities, virtual reality was perceived positively by students, particularly in terms of engagement and understanding of the procedure. They suggest that future integration of immersive content into the medical curriculum could represent an interesting pedagogical lever to develop.

As a single-center trial with 102 participants, the study’s findings are limited in scope, and the absence of a statistically significant difference means the slightly higher mean score in the immersive video group should be interpreted with caution. The qualitative results reflect the perceptions of a subgroup of students rather than measured learning outcomes.

Subject of Research: Comparison of immersive 360° video, 2D video, and lecture teaching methods for OSCE lumbar puncture training in medical students

Article Title: Impact of an immersive video program on training for Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCE) in lumbar puncture: a randomized controlled trial

Article References: Salem, D., Bain, A., Gallouche, M., Legris, L., Vaillant, M., & Bellier, A. J. (2026). Impact of an immersive video program on training for Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCE) in lumbar puncture: a randomized controlled trial. BMC Medical Education. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12909-026-10357-w

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: 10.1186/s12909-026-10357-w

Keywords: medical education, lumbar puncture, OSCE, virtual reality, immersive video, randomized controlled trial, simulation, student anxiety, Grenoble Alpes University, BMC Medical Education, Impact, immersive