AR Surgery Performed By US Doctor
A doctor from the US state of Michigan uses augmented reality to perform surgeries. Specifically, Dr. Safa Kassab said he’s been using it for knee replacements.
The chief of surgery at Trinity Health Oakland in Pontiac claimed, “this is something that’s really helped my practice.”
He told CBS News Detroit how the AR glasses improve surgery precision to cut operation and recovery times. Also, Dr. Kassab added, “I think it’s a game changer.”
How does AR surgery work?
(1/2) Metro Detroit doctor uses #augmentedreality to perform surgeries. Alongside Vuzix partner @PixeeMedical, Dr. Safa Kassab, Chief of Surgery at Trinity Health, is the only surgeon in Michigan using #AR for surgeries. $vuzi #Healthcare https://t.co/mVkwD4yyIs
— Vuzix (@Vuzix) March 10, 2023
The doctor demonstrated how the AR glasses help him perform knee replacement surgeries:
“[The] glasses project an image onto my eye, and it allows me to see angles and measurements in real-time….”
“… but they’re projected on the patient’s bone, therefore, being less invasive and just much more accurate.”
The CBS News report showed how the AR glasses look from the doctor’s perspective. The video showed the lenses projecting a knee’s angle of elevation.
The Illinois Bone & Joint Institute explains that most of the United States use manual knee replacement.
It requires surgeons to refer to specialized alignment guides. In contrast, AR surgery helps Dr. Kassab match a patient’s knee with these guides in real time.
The news outlet said he is the only doctor using augmented reality technology to perform these operations.
However, Dr. Kassab believes more fields of surgery will use AR in the future, saying:
“It’s already going there in a lot of different areas. A lot of it has to do with the things we deal with like Google….”
“…It’s called machine learning, you know, the glasses kind of learn. The more they do it, the more they learn, the more accurate they get.”
Numerous medical advancements prove Dr. Kassab’s claim. Take the Case Western Reserve University’s School of Medicine as an example.
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It holds a VR medical training program called HoloAnatomy so that students can learn human anatomy without needing cadavers.
Ilumis created the technology, and its CEO, Mark Day, stated in a press release, “Universities can reduce the expensive, time-consuming task of obtaining cadavers.”
The chief of surgery at Trinity Health Oakland Hospital says he has performed around 10 knee replacement surgeries using this method.
Conclusion
A US doctor is pioneering the use of augmented reality for medical procedures. At the time of writing, he is the only one who uses AR surgery for knee replacements.
Soon, we should expect technology to improve medicine in new and exciting ways. More importantly, we must prepare for its long-term impacts on other industries.
Want to learn more about those digital trends? Follow Inquirer Tech to learn more about augmented reality, artificial intelligence, and more.
