Doctors Use Apple Vision Pro to Enhance Shoulder Arthroscopy Surgery

Brazilian surgeons recently used the Apple Vision Pro headset to enhance shoulder arthroscopy, projecting high-resolution images and real-time data during surgery.

“Shoulder arthroscopy surgery uses a camera inside the joint, and surgeons perform it by looking directly at a screen. With this device, I was able to see the image on a display the size of a movie screen with high resolution. Besides, I was able to see the patient’s exams and 3D models in real-time,” Dr Bruno Gobbato told MacMagazine, after using Apple Vision Pro for the first time while performing a surgery recently.

That’s a first for Brazil that a surgeon has used an Apple Vision Pro headset to optimise a surgical procedure. The orthopaedic doctor used the device to operate on a patient with a rotator cuff tear. He posted a video on YouTube demonstrating how easily he could view his notes, patient X-rays, and a live camera feed at the same time using the headset.

Gobbato also praised the dynamic range of the cameras in the device emphasising that while regular cameras struggle to capture footage due to the glare from bright surgical lights, this was not a problem with the Apple headset.

However, this is not the first time that the device made its way into an OT. Earlier, the headset helped surgeons in a spine operation in the UK. Used alongside an app developed by eXeX, Vision Pro facilitated real-time data streaming, surgical preparation, and instrument selection, potentially eliminating human errors and boosting surgical confidence.

Apple Takes Healthcare Seriously

“If you zoom out into the future and look back and you ask the question – what was Apple’s greatest contribution to mankind? It will be about health,” CEO Tim Cook had once said. It seems that his vision is finally turning into reality. Apple is building the healthcare OS, where AI will play a big role.

With iPads and iPhones assisting nurses in responding more promptly to alerts and enhancing medication administration, the healthcare community has effectively driven meaningful change with Apple products at their fingertips.

Then there are Apple Smartwatches, health data trackers, and health-kit-enabled apps on iPhone all trying to fix the healthcare industry. The company plans to release watches that will be able to detect hypertension and sleep apnea.

What’s more? It’s also working on bringing hearing-aid capabilities to its AirPods and on an AI-powered health coaching service to track emotions.

However, when it comes to healthcare innovation, Apple Vision Pro seems to be a stellar new addition. With its ultra-high-resolution screens for each eye and multiple cameras for hand and eye tracking, the headset heralds a new era of innovation in healthcare.

By blending digital content with the physical world, it unlocks powerful spatial experiences, transforming areas such as clinical education, surgical planning, training, medical imaging, behavioral health, and more.

Revolutionising Healthcare

Developers across the healthcare community are using the technical capabilities of visionOS to create and bring new apps to Apple Vision Pro that are igniting new possibilities for physicians, frontline workers, and even students.

For instance, Stryker’s myMako app extends a surgeon’s experience in and beyond the operation theatre with Apple Vision Pro. It’s a 3D program that allows surgeons to create models of what they would be doing in the surgery beforehand, and have access to those surgical plan details and insights during the actual procedure in a 3D immersive visual experience.

The myMako app was also employed during the latest surgery use case of Apple Vision Pro by the Brazilian doctor.

Vision Pro has the potential to revolutionise medical education and training. Through immersive VR experiences, aspiring healthcare professionals can gain hands-on experience in simulated settings, refining their skills and improving their learning outcomes.

Furthermore, VR-enabled live streaming of surgical procedures provides extensive access to surgical education, bridging the gap between theory and practice.

Apple’s Vision Pro headset is emerging as a healthcare game-changer, using VR and AR to enhance treatment and monitoring. It enables healthcare professionals to view a patient’s medical history and vitals in a way that was previously unimaginable.

The headset’s display capabilities fill a doctor’s field of view with anything from a patient’s blood pressure graphs to their latest chest X-ray, ensuring that crucial information is always at the forefront. It facilitates more accurate and informed decision-making and diagnoses.

One of the most notable benefits of Vision Pro is its potential to enhance telemedicine experiences. By offering immersive virtual consultations, it enables patients to access healthcare services from anywhere, thereby breaking down barriers of distance and accessibility.

It is especially beneficial for those managing conditions like Parkinson’s or Alzheimer’s as home monitoring can be crucial for them.

Recently, Sharp HealthCare’s Spatial Computing Centre of Excellence in San Diego bought 30 Vision Pro units to give them to healthcare workers for exploring the use of the tech in healthcare settings.

What’s Next?

There is no doubt that Apple Vision Pro has made VR headsets cool again. When compared to other headsets like Meta’s Quest 3, Vision Pro has a lot of advanced features to offer.

The Vision Pro headset has two micro-OLED displays packing 4k screens for each eye. It comes with 12 cameras in various positions all over the headset, five sensors to track other details, which include a LiDAR Scanner, and two TrueDepth sensors.

These sensors work with two infrared flood illuminators to paint a 3D image of the surroundings. To process all of this data quickly and on the device, Apple even created the R1 chip, which reduces the latency to around 12 ms.

However, it’s only for those who can afford the price. As, clearly the $3,500 price tag doesn’t sit well with a lot of users who think it’s too much for a headset, even with all these features.

And, reportedly Apple is also cutting down on Vision Pro production due to low demand.

Source: X

Transforming its features into healthcare solutions, Vision Pro shows that the future of healthcare is bright, innovative, and it is digital – and Apple can lead the way in making such a future possible.

However, the company may want to look into further improving the headset’s features and going bearish on the product’s pricing strategy.

Source: X

Currently, Apple Vision Pro is only available for sale in the US, with other countries, including India, which houses the largest developer ecosystem, waiting patiently for its release. But with the reports of production cuts coming in, it seems like the waiting period is going to be a little longer.

The post Doctors Use Apple Vision Pro to Enhance Shoulder Arthroscopy Surgery appeared first on Analytics India Magazine.