Mercy Hospital in Miami and Kendall Regional Medical Center in Tamiami, Fla., part of HCA East Florida, are now offering augmented reality spine surgery.
The AR spine program was introduced at sister HCA Healthcare facility, Aventura (Fla.) Hospital and Medical Center, in early November.
AR-guided surgery enables surgeons to maintain focus directly on the patient, rather than a monitor displaying the patient's anatomy.
"It allows us to perform minimally invasive spine procedures with more precision and efficiency, thus significantly lowering the risks associated with traditional spinal surgery and improving patient outcomes," Amar Rajadhyaksha, MD, a spine surgeon at KRMC, said in a Dec. 2 news release.
The system features a transparent near-eye-display headset and all elements of a traditional navigation system.
In real-time, the device determines the position of surgical tools and superimposes them on the patient's CT data, which is projected onto the surgeon's retina using the headset, allowing them to simultaneously look at the patient and the navigation data.
"Augmented reality is revolutionizing the operating room and we are excited to embrace this next chapter of surgical innovation," said Mercy Hospital CEO David Donaldson. "The marketwide launch of this program enables all three HCA Miami-Dade hospitals to provide the most forward-thinking technology and quality of care to spinal patients all across South Florida."