Augmented Reality Medicine

In medical applications, augmented reality could virtually turn the body inside-out. For example, the video stream of a probe inside a patients body could be projected onto the outside in the location of the probe. 

Benefits

It could give the surgeon a more accurate depiction of the examined area, and help them immensely. That could be especially useful in training, giving the prospective doctor a clearer and more ‘direct’ picture.

Challenges

The challenge here in the tracking capabilities of modern AR systems. For entertainment or marketing purposes accuracy might not be that important, however, in medical applications, it is literally vital. Small inaccuracies or tracking errors could lead to fatal mistakes.

Take away

While we might have to wait another year or so in order for the technology to get better, augmented reality is the future of surgery and medical applications in general.

Examples

Johns Hopkins University

MAR is a research project founded by numerous educational institutions. It deals with the countless possible applications for AR in modern medicine.

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