{"id":29058,"date":"2019-04-18T09:44:31","date_gmt":"2019-04-18T13:44:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/college.unc.edu\/?p=29058"},"modified":"2024-07-02T17:10:57","modified_gmt":"2024-07-02T17:10:57","slug":"augmented-health-care","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/collegearchive.unc.edu\/?p=29058","title":{"rendered":"Augmented Health Care"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><em>Henry Fuchs is always looking 20 years ahead, and two decades from now the computer scientist thinks augmented-reality eyeglasses will be the norm. Fuchs and his team of students and colleagues are developing an augmented-reality program to aid in laparoscopic surgery training and, maybe one day, revolutionize minimally invasive surgery.<\/em><\/p>\n<div class=\"ast-oembed-container \" style=\"height: 100%;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Augmented Health Care\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/AQHkIIj7-S0?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-content\">\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>As a computer science student in the 1970s, Henry Fuchs tried to explain the benefits of affordable, personal computers to others at his school. Most were not convinced \u2013\u2013 they saw no need for this technology in their day-to-day life.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was such a radical notion, even 10 years later I couldn\u2019t convince professors in major universities that this was a good idea,\u201d he says while throwing his hands up, still exasperated by the thought.<\/p>\n<p>Decades later, the average person spends about 4 hours per day on their pocket-sized computer \u2013\u2013 their smartphone. Fuchs doesn\u2019t have time to relish in his correct prediction, though. He\u2019s already looking to the future.<\/p>\n<p>Fuchs\u2019 research group focuses on computer graphics and virtual and augmented reality, with many of their project applications in the medical field. One of these is in laparoscopic surgery.<\/p>\n<p>Also known as minimally invasive surgery, it is performed in a patient\u2019s abdomen or pelvis using small incisions, a camera and rod-like laparoscope to transmit images, and specialized instruments. While patient recovery time is normally faster compared to an open surgery, there are challenges with this technique \u2013\u2013 like training.<\/p>\n<p>Timothy Farrell, a surgeon at UNC Health Care, says medical students first learn open surgery and then move on to laparoscopic surgery. Although the steps of both operations are essentially the same, the skills required vary greatly.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey have to learn how to interact in this environment, which is no longer looking down through an opening in the patient\u2019s abdominal wall, but rather looking at projected images on a screen while your hands are working below you,\u201d he says. \u201cIt\u2019s a whole different skillset. There\u2019s a different learning curve.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Fuchs hopes to ease this transition. For the past two years, his team has been developing an augmented-reality training tool for the procedure. With this technology, instead of looking at a TV, the trainee uses the augmented-reality headset display and laparoscopes to move objects from one side of a pegged board to the other. Through forced-feedback, the program will also be a way for students to fine-tune their techniques.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s sort of like the expert surgeon will be putting their hands on the novice to guide them through how things should be done more precisely,\u201d Fuchs says.<\/p>\n<p>Their goal is that, one day, all laparoscopic surgeries will use augmented-reality displays instead of the current use of camera and monitors. Fuchs realizes that this technology is far off, though, and remains focused on perfecting the training tool.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou have to do the reconstruction very precisely,\u201d Fuchs says. \u201cEven one, two millimeters that you\u2019re off will keep you from grabbing the little pieces properly.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Luckily for Fuchs and his students, they have a host of collaborators to get them through challenges like this. Besides working with the computer science department and doctors at the University of Arizona, Fuchs is also partnering with surgeons, like Farrell, here at UNC.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBy continuing to collaborate with the medical experts and the robotics experts, we not only learn from them on a regular basis, we get much more exciting and better results than otherwise,\u201d Fuchs says. \u201cThe spirit of collaboration makes our work much more relevant.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"boilerplate\">\n<p><em>Henry Fuchs is a professor in the Department of Computer Science within the UNC College of Arts &amp; Sciences and adjunct professor within the UNC\/NC State Joint Department of Biomedical Engineering.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Timothy Farrell is a professor of surgery in the UNC School of Medicine and a surgeon and director of minimally invasive surgery at UNC Health Care.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>By <a href=\"https:\/\/endeavors.unc.edu\/author\/meganann\/\">Megan May<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/endeavors.unc.edu\/augmented-health-care\/\">Endeavors\u00a0<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Henry Fuchs is always looking 20 years ahead, and two decades from now the computer scientist thinks augmented-reality eyeglasses will be the norm. Fuchs and his team of students and colleagues are developing an augmented-reality program to aid in laparoscopic surgery training and, maybe one day, revolutionize minimally invasive surgery.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":29071,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center 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