Abstract / Summary
Abstract Introduction Microvascular free flap transfer is essential in contemporary oral and maxillofacial reconstruction. However, acquiring microvascular anastomosis skills remains challenging in low-resource settings due to a heavy dependence on high-cost instruments and expert supervision. This scoping review (ScR) mapped the existing evidence on immersive reality (IR) technologies for microvascular anastomosis training and explored their potential applications in educationally limited and low-resource environments. Main body Comprehensive literature searches were performed in PubMed/MEDLINE, Embase, the Cochrane Library, and Scopus for studies published between 2010 and April 2026, following the PRISMA-ScR guidelines. Seven studies published between 2010 and 2024 met the inclusion criteria. Although these studies supported specific microsurgical tasks, most described proof-of-concept prototypes with limited validation. Furthermore, none evaluated a structured microvascular reconstruction curriculum. Crucially, no included study directly evaluated maxillofacial reconstructive surgeons or trainees, nor did any specifically address head and neck microvascular anastomosis curricula. Conclusion Current evidence indicates technical promise alongside significant literature gaps, as effectiveness, clinical transfer to the operating room, and cost-effectiveness remain unproven. To address training disparities, we introduce an author-proposed staged curriculum framework wherein lower-cost IR platforms provide foundational orientation, instrument handling, depth perception, suture sequencing, and ergonomic visualization before trainees’ progress to bench, biological, and supervised clinical training.