Tuesday, June 25, 2013

Live Surgery in 3D!

3DLiveSurgery
3D Live Surgery
When most people think of 3D video, big blockbuster movies come to mind. 3D-TV has not really penetrated the home market as quickly as HD for example. Most of the content available to home viewers is produced content, not live video. As a live transmission company, producing a live 3D broadcast presented a lot of challenges in uncharted waters. DCI recently worked with Boxline Box medical communications to transmit the first-ever live broadcast of a 3D surgery at the American Urology Association (AUA) annual convention in San Diego, CA. While most medical broadcasts are done via videoconference, Boxline’s highly experienced Operating Room video staff and DCI’s quality-obsessed field uplink engineers combine perfectly to produce the best looking live broadcasts in the medical communications industry.
3D Live Surgery
3D Live Surgery
The AUA conference includes a lot of live video from the daVinci robotic surgical system, which natively works in 3D for the surgeon doing the procedure. All the previous feeds we have done were all standard 2D HD, but this year we stepped it up a level to provide the same 3D HD video seen by the operating surgeon.
Because the data required to carry uncompressed 3D HD video exceeds the 1.5gbps defined in SMPTE-292M, commonly known as HD-SDI, there are two ways to carry this content. SMPTE 424M is the most simple within a production plant, it uses a single coaxial cable with a data rate of around 3.0gbps. This interface is commonly referred to as 3G-SDI, although the “G” stands for gigabit, not “Generation” as 3G cellular standards. The only problem with 3G-SDI is very few HD encoders and receiver/decoders used by satellite trucks and teleports are capable of handling it, and the few that do require expensive license keys which no one has purchased due to the lack of 3D transmission requests.

Friday, June 14, 2013

Brain surgeons get a practice run with simulator from Elyria-based Surgery Theater

For a number of years, pilots have used virtual reality simulators to practice critical missions before taking to the skies. Thanks to a revolutionary new virtual reality training tool developed by Elyria’s Surgical Theater, LLC, surgeons now have a way to practice brain surgery before setting foot in the operating room.
Surgical theater 3D
Surgical theater 3D
The Surgery Rehearsal Platform (SRP) simulator consists of a desk top computer, a portable laptop system, software, controllers and 3D glasses.
“Using standard CT and MRI images from any patient, the SRP generates accurate models in 3D that show the interaction between life-like tissue and surgical instruments,” explains Moty Avisar, Surgical Theater president and CEO. “The tissue responds realistically to actions taken by the surgeon, enabling pre-surgery planning and rehearsal with complete accuracy.”
Beyond practicing on standard CT and MRI images, surgeons can also use unique images taken of the patient who will be undergoing surgery.

Monday, June 3, 2013

Cutting Edge: 3D Tech Boosts Surgical Precision

Moviegoers aren't the only ones wearing 3D glasses nowadays — doctors could benefit from them, too, a new study suggests.
In the past, doctors have been skeptical of using 3D technology in their work, preferring to rely on their own experience. But that may change, thanks to improved 3D glasses and even glasses-free systems. Funded by industry sponsors, the study of 50 surgeons using the new technology showed improvements in surgical precision and speed.
3D Laparascopy
3D Laparascopy
"While the technology still requires some fine-tuning, technology without the need to wear special glasses will increase the popularity of 3D systems in operating rooms," study leader Ulrich Leiner of the Fraunhofer Heinrich Hertz Institute (HHI) in Berlin said in a statement.
Improvements to screens are driving developments in 3D technology. High-definition screens are already available. The next step is ultra-high definition, with a sixteenfold improvement in resolution, according to study co-author Michael Witte of HHI.
To evaluate whether new 3D technology was ready for hospital applications, researchers invited surgeons from the Klinikum rechts der Isar's surgical hospital to test it out. A leading endoscope manufacturer and an international display company funded the study.
The surgeons tested four different systems: 2D, 3D with glasses, 3D without glasses and a mirror-based 3D system. The glasses-free model relied on an eye-tracking camera system that delivered separate images to each eye, creating a 3D effect in the brain.

Saturday, May 18, 2013

Surgeons may soon ‘see around corners’ through real-time 3D images


A first-of-its-kind endoscope that allows surgeons to see around obstructions and generate real-time 3D images while performing surgery, may soon be a reality thanks to a recent license agreement made between The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) and EndoPodium, a minimally invasive surgical technology company based in San Diego, California.3D realtime
“SickKids has always been at the forefront of developing cutting-edge medical technology,” says Dr. James Wright, Chief of Perioperative Services and Surgeon-in-Chief at SickKids, “This agreement is the first step towards making many surgeries faster and easier and ultimately improving patient outcomes.”
Under the agreement SickKids and EndoPodium will collaborate to create a prototype of an endoscope that will function similar to an umbrella. During minimally invasive laparoscopic surgery, the closed device can be inserted into a small incision and its three arms - each equipped with a camera and a light source - opened once inside the body. The three camera view means a larger viewing field and the ability to reconstruct a 3D scene of the target area.
SickKids’ Centre for Image-Guided Innovation & Therapeutic Intervention (CIGITI) group developed the idea for the endoscope after collaborating with surgeons, engineers and software developers.
more about 3D video technology here
complete article here

Tuesday, May 7, 2013

3D HD System - Titan Medical Inc. Announces Update to the Development of its Single Incision Surgery


TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - May 6, 2013) - Titan Medical Inc. today announces that it has completed prototyping of its 3D HD chip-on-tip camera system to be used in its Single Incision surgery system. This unique chip-on-tip technology will be an integral part of the system, allowing surgeons the flexibility and capability for viewing with a single incision approach.
Endoscopic 3D
Endoscopic 3D
"The 3D HD chip-on-tip camera will allow surgeons the flexibility of seeing patient anatomy and instruments from multiple viewpoints," commented Dr. Reiza Rayman, President, Titan Medical Inc. "This type of capability is unavailable to robotic surgeons today."
The Company is advancing the development of its Single Incision Surgery system and remains on track to commercialization.
About Titan Medical Inc.
Titan Medical Inc. is a Canadian public company  focused on the design and development of a robotic surgical system for application in minimally invasive surgery ("MIS"). The Company's robotic surgical system, currently under development, comprises a surgeon-controlled robotic platform that includes a 3D vision system and interactive instruments for performing MIS procedures, and a surgeon workstation that provides the surgeon with an interface to the robotic platform for controlling the interactive instruments and providing a 3D endoscopic view of inside a patient's body during MIS procedures. The robotic surgical system is being designed to expand robotic surgery into areas of surgical specialties and simple and complex procedures that are currently under-serviced, and to allow surgeons to perform procedures within small to medium size surgical spaces such as general surgery and cholecystectomy. For more information, visit the Company's website at www.titanmedicalinc.com.

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

The new light 3D laparoscopy without robotics


From being safer to more cost effective, read on to know about 3D laparoscopy – a new technique for uterus associated surgeries
3D laparoscopy is safe, creates fewer complications, is cost-effective, reduces surgery time and even the number of days the patient needs to spend in the hospital post surgery. It also gives the surgeon, performing an invasive procedure, a far better field of vision, thus improving the precision and accuracy of the surgery.
3D Laprascopy Surgery
3D Laprascopy Surgery
 After performing over 25,000 laparoscopic surgeries, laparoscopic surgeon Dr Prakash Trivedi hails 3D laparoscopy as a beneficial advancement in the field of surgery. It could be a boon, for patients who have had a previous C-section, have fibroids or are high risk patients suffering from obesity, diabetes, blood pressure.
Dr Trivedi successfully performed 3D laparoscopic surgery on two patients at the Total Women’s Health Care Center, Mumbai. Parineeta Seth, 40 had been suffering from menstrual migraine, cramps, vomiting, and nausea for over a year and was mistakenly diagnosed as suffering from fibroids, when she actually had adenomysis and had to remove her uterus. “I was really worried about it but the 3D laparoscopy technique made it so simple. My sister, who underwent a hysterectomy, took a month to recover but just a week later, I don’t have any pain or discomfort and am already at work,” she says. Dr Trivedi adds, “Its just like doing an open surgery, but with the benefits of minimal invasion. Even suturing with 3D laparoscopy is so clear and simple.”

Tuesday, April 9, 2013

Olympus Introduces the World's Only Articulating HD 3D Laparoscopic Surgical Video System


Technology Improves Speed, Accuracy and Precision of Surgical Procedures When Compared with 2D Surgical Systems.

The Olympus Articulating HD 3D Laparoscopic Surgical Video System delivers value to surgeons and patients by reducing surgical errors and improving the speed, accuracy and precision of surgical tasks such as dissection, grasping and suturing when compared with traditional 2D surgical systems, based on internal Olympus testing conducted using a simulated surgical model. This is accomplished by restoring natural 3D vision and depth perception when performing laparoscopic procedures and is independent of a surgeon's skill level.

"The Olympus HD 3D system is ideal for suturing, accurately identifying tissue planes and other precision surgical tasks that are required in my laparoscopic surgical cases," said Dr. Marcos Michellotti, Assistant Professor of Surgery at Loma Linda University Health System in Loma Linda, California. "In addition, the articulating design enables me to obtain the critical view of anatomical structures in HD 3D without losing the important visual horizon. This is not possible with traditional fixed angle laparoscopes."

Another significant advantage of the new Olympus HD 3D video platform is its availability as a module that can be easily added to an existing Olympus EVIS EXERA III Universal Imaging System. The modular design reduces the investment necessary to add 3D capability, and allows the surgeon to choose either 2D or 3D visualization from the surgical field. This helps to reduce capital investments and simplify asset management and training.                            

"The Olympus HD 3D System brings value to those surgeons that need the precision, resolution, and depth perception of 3D without the substantial capital investment and annual maintenance expenses associated with alternatives such as robotic technology," said Luke Calcraft, President of the Medical Systems Group at Olympus Corporation of the Americas. "We are leading the way with new innovations to help our customers realize the clinical efficacy and cost effectiveness required under Accountable Care."

Olympus is a pioneer of minimally invasive surgery (Laparoscopy), a modern technique in which an operation in the abdomen is performed through small incisions as compared to larger incisions needed in traditional surgical procedures. This surgical approach addresses the key requirements of Healthcare Reform:

Increased Quality of Care – Minimally invasive surgery provides better clinical outcomes than traditional "open" surgery.
Decreased Costs – Numerous industry and clinical studies have demonstrated that minimally invasive surgery provides significant cost savings when compared to a robotic surgical approach.*
Enhanced Patient Satisfaction – Minimally invasive surgery provides less scarring, shorter hospital stays and faster recovery than traditional "open" surgery.