Royal Philips has introduced for the first time a surgical navigation and visualization system with integrated augmented reality function. It will soon appear on the market.

With augmented reality technology, the real-time image displayed on the screen is combined with the data obtained by fluoroscopy. The possibility of using this technique in endoscopic surgery has been widely discussed. However, despite the potential of this field, it is still very underdeveloped. One of the factors is the lack of integrated systems that do not need to be supplemented and modified in order to be able to work with augmented images.

The software and technical equipment of the Philips system are designed, among other things, to solve this problem as well. The complex is equipped with an X-ray unit and high-resolution optical cameras, and the image displayed on the screen is already undergoing all the necessary processing. Philips devices using augmented reality technology passed the first preclinical tests at Karolinska University Hospital in Stockholm and at the Medical Center of the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. According to the findings, published in the journal Spine, the accuracy of the surgeries performed increased by more than 20%.

The developed unit has been highly praised by surgeons. “The new technology gives surgeons the ability to obtain high-quality 3D images of the patient’s spine during surgery and helps plan the optimal course of the intervention. Doctors can place the transpedicular screws more accurately… It is also possible to assess the result of the intervention in 3D directly in the operating room,” commented Dr. Skulason of Landtspitali University Hospital in Reykjavik.