The interventions dedicated to the spine are among the most delicate of all.
Spine surgeons need to spend years studying and practicing to avoid making mistakes.
A medical team in Oman, in Armed Forces Hospital, managed to improve overall performance, taking advantage of the help of augmented reality.
A 52-year-old citizen was treated through intervention by the RA, and his mobility successfully recovered.
To carry out the operation, an excellent team was created, led by Colonel Doctor Ahmed Al Jahuri. Orthopedists, radiology experts and employees of the medical engineering department participated.
The team has pooled their knowledge to ensure ad Ali bin Hamdan Al Ghafri – the patient who has undergone the operation – an assistance worthy of the name, which knows how to move in step with the times.
Let's see in detail what happened and what is the role of augmented reality.
Spinal operations are complex procedures that require the surgeon to be careful when dealing with the nerves and vessels connected to the spinal cord. (…) Augmented reality technology is one of the latest technologies in spine surgery.
Hanan bint Saif
Revolutionary spinal surgery
Doctors and engineers worked together to develop a precise technique, capable of assisting the staff in the room at the time of surgery.
Doctor Al Jahuri, manager of the operating rooms, briefly described the technique used, helping us to understand better.
“In this technique,” he said, “low-dose 3D CT scans are combined with optical imaging with fixed cameras, which results in the creation of a three-dimensional augmented reality visualization of the patient's internal anatomy, and this image combined acts as a scanner that guides the surgeon in fixing the vertebrae with surgical screws in place.
By harnessing the power of augmented reality, it is possible to “reduce surgical risks, medical errors, pain and blood loss, which leads to faster patient recovery and reduces their hospitalization, as well as reducing subsequent complications and medical costs”.
In the future, technology is likely to become an active part of surgical medicine, enabling doctors to perform incredibly complex operations.
The spine is just the first example, a first glimpse of what the will be future of medicine.
