Surgeons at UC Davis Health are pioneering the use of augmented reality glasses, which can significantly improve surgical procedures.
Augmented reality is an innovative technology that allows you to see what something might look like without having to physically hold or see it. It has the potential to transform the way we consume entertainment, communicate, use digital content, and access our healthcare.
It’s related to virtual reality but expands the possibilities, says E. Bradley Strong, professor and vice chairman of otolaryngology.
“Virtual reality replaces your real-world environment with a completely virtual environment, while augmented reality incorporates digital images into the real-world environment,” Strong explained. “Augmented reality is an umbrella term we like to use to describe both.”
Using augmented reality in surgery
Surgeons from the Departments of Otorhinolaryngology, Neurosurgery and Orthopaedic Surgery have founded the UC Davis Medical Extended Reality (MXR) Research Group. It is part of the 3D printing and visualization laboratory at UC Davis Health. They are the first to use augmented reality in healthcare operations.
The MXR research group at UC Davis is collaborating with external companies, including Xironetic, to be the world’s first to apply augmented reality overlays to a range of complex surgical procedures.
For this purpose, surgeons wear augmented reality glasses during surgery. They project 3D computed tomography (CT) and MRI scans that display important information directly in the surgeon’s field of vision. The glasses help the surgeon:
- Plan the surgical approach
- Visualization of hidden vascular and bone structures
- Locate instruments and implants
- Drilling and cutting guides for projects
“The glasses help us transfer our virtual surgical plans into the operating room,” said Strong. “It allows us to have a better view of the surgical field and visualize objects that would otherwise be difficult to see precisely.”
Patient education with augmented reality
Surgeons in the UC Davis MXR research group are also using augmented reality to better educate patients before surgery. They can provide the patient with an immersive and interactive experience, making the complex medical procedure easier to understand.
“Doctors spend years learning how to stitch together many 2D images and then visualize them in three dimensions,” Strong said. “It’s impossible to ask patients to do the same thing in 30 minutes. By using this technology, we can give our patients a clear idea of what will happen during their surgery.”
The glasses help us put our virtual surgical plans into practice. This allows us to see better what is in the surgical field and visualize objects that would otherwise be difficult to see precisely.” —E. Bradley Stark
Before undergoing surgery to correct the orbital fracture around his right eye, Richard Odom was able to experience the benefits of augmented reality.
During his last visit to UC Davis Medical Center, the surgical team explained what the surgery entailed and how they planned to treat his fracture, but using augmented reality, Odom took a trip inside his own skull and saw it for himself.
After putting on a headset connected to the augmented reality system, Odom was able to see a floating 3D image of his skull.
With a flick of his finger, Odom was able to hide the layer of skin over his bone and see where an implant would be placed in his eye socket.
“It’s great to see that the implant isn’t just floating around in there,” Odom said. “It makes me feel better knowing exactly where it’s going to be.”
Augmented reality as a teaching tool
Because of the flexibility in integrating physical and virtual environments, UC Davis Health has also begun using extended reality in the training of fellows, residents and medical students.
This means that the trainees can now see what they previously saw as a picture in a book as a 3D object in space that they can manipulate and visualize.
“It’s exciting to see the light bulb go on for them when they look into the intracranial cavity and see an implant that may be misplaced,” Strong said. “We’ve found this technology to be a very powerful teaching tool.”
The future of augmented reality at UC Davis Health
The new technology will also find a home in Aggie Square, the state-of-the-art research and innovation center currently under construction on the UC Davis Health campus in Sacramento. The campus’s 3D printing and visualization lab, MXR research group, and the UC Davis Biomedical Engineering (TEAM) undergraduate lab will join forces. Together, they will form the leading visualization and 3D printing lab/research group in Northern California.
“Augmented reality will become more and more prevalent in medicine,” Strong added. “As the technology continues to grow, it will expand into many different areas of surgery and education and will become pervasive in all areas of our medical care.”
