Leveraging Eye-Tracking to Study Nasal Analysis Skills of Trainees and Experts

Introduction: Nasal analysis is a challenging skill that otolaryngology trainees must demonstrate competency in on-board examinations. Study objective: To compare where experts and trainees focus their gaze when completing nasal analysis of a patient, as measured by eye tracking software. Methods: Participants of various training levels ( n = 27) were shown photographs of six faces from all standard angles for photographic nasal analysis. Eye-tracking data were collected. Heat and gaze maps, the time to first fixation on areas of interest, duration, and number of fixations were extracted. These metrics were compared between experts and trainees using t -tests and one-way ANOVA. Results: Qualitative comparisons of gaze patterns reveal a more comprehensive and organized approach among experts than trainees. However, quantitative measures of eye-tracking metrics, including the time to first fixations, duration, and number of fixations made by experts and trainees, were similar. Conclusions: Gaze tracking reveals more thorough and efficient eye movements among experts than trainees during nasal analysis. Further study may be useful in the development of learning tools to guide effective nasal analyses.