A spine surgery was performed in Brazil with the help of Microsoft's augmented reality viewer
Google's dream is about to be realized by Microsoft. Hololens, the visors that the Redmond-based company has made for augmented reality, are helping orthopedic surgeons at the hospital in the Brazilian city of Santa Caterina-
If you remember, Google first tried with little success to make its Google Glass available to medicine. However, the experience of Mountain View's smart glasses ended negatively due to some bugs and battery problems. According to Dr. Lampert and Dr. Gobatto, the Hololens are a viable and mostly inexpensive alternative to traditional medical equipment that is not always available in some hospitals. In these cases, doctors are forced to refer to images made by other facilities. Having three-dimensional scans available is vital for surgeons. With Hololens, things get easier
The operation
Brazilian doctors were able, as you can see in the video, to perform spine surgery with the help of Microsoft's visors. Using the wearable, the spinal surgeons were able to rely on a series of 3D projections of the part of the patient to be operated on. The Hololens have, in fact, allowed doctors to visualize the virtual bone composition on which to intervene and understand how best to fix the screws on the spine. Normally, during these operations, surgeons are forced to continuously look at computers. With Microsoft's glasses, images are at their fingertips and always available. Brazilian doctors now hope to launch a course to teach surgeons how to use the holographic technology in operating rooms.