New Augmented Reality Surgery Comes to Reston Hospital Center

Reston Hospital Center is now offering a new augmented reality system for spine surgeries.

The technology allows spine surgeons to see through a patient’s anatomy. Hospital staff described the tool as the “first AR guidance system to be used in surgery.” Currently, the technology is approved for minimally invasive spine implant operations.

Dr. Christopher Good said the introduction of the new technology — which he used at Reston Hospital Center — will “elevate” the hospital’s spine program to “an all-new level.”

“Bringing AR into the operating room has the possibility of leading to smaller incisions and less invasive procedures which means less pain and faster recovery for patients,” Good said.

Here’s more from the hospital on how the surgery works:

Similar to a real-time GPS, this “see-through” surgery lets surgeons know exactly where to place implants in a patient’s unique anatomy, and is bringing a new standard of personalization and care to the operating room.

The Augmedics xvision Spine System used at Reston Hospital Center is different from other image guidance systems, as it allows surgeons to maintain their focus directly on the patient, rather than on a distant screen displaying the patient’s anatomy.

Reston Hospital Center’s new surgical system consists of a transparent near-eye-display headset and all elements of a traditional navigation system. It accurately determines the position of surgical tools, in real-time, and superimposes them on the patient’s CT data. The navigation data is then projected onto the surgeon’s retina using the headset, allowing him or her to simultaneously look at both the patient and the navigation data. The xvision Spine System is designed to revolutionize how surgery is done by giving the surgeon better control and visualization, which may lead to easier, faster and safer surgeries.

Photo courtesy Reston Hospital Center