Augmented Reality Imagery Effectively Gives Surgeons 3D X-Ray Vision

Mediview is an Ohio based startup whose vision to develop an organization that participates in patient-centered cancer care via disruptive surgical navigation medical technology.

Recently, they raised $4.5 million for MediView XR.  A technology to equip surgeons with augmented reality imagery that effectively gives them 3D x-ray-like vision.

Using Microsoft HoloLens, surgeons are able to insert instruments into a patient and see an animation that shows exactly where the instrument is going inside the body.  It will help surgeons remove cancer tumors in a way that is similar to controlling a video game.

“What we’re doing is creating a way to navigate to a cancerous lesion in a way that’s never been done before with augmented reality,” said MediView CEO John Black in an interview with VentureBeat. “It’s like using a kind of GPS with augmented reality to navigate to a specific point in the human body. You’ve probably seen a little bit of noise out in the world about augmented reality. We are really one of the only companies using it for true surgical navigation. So tracking … the patient, the hologram, and the instrument to get there.”

Another huge benefit for both patient and surgeon will come in the form of reduced radiation exposure.  MediView’s Real-Time, Fused Holographic Visualization (RTFHV) system will allow surgeons to no longer require as much X-ray radiation while operating.  Black said the technology is able to tremendously reduce radiation exposure for technicians and patients, but will not completely eliminate the need for some radiation-based imaging.

In the future, Black sees numerous other uses and applications for this technology. MediView will be using its funding to develop this transformative technology further to help surgeons with spine, neurosurgery, breast, ENT, orthopedic, and even more general surgeries.