Augmented and Virtual Reality in Minimally Invasive Surgery, State of the Art and Future Prospects

Computer assisted guidance systems which utilize Augmented Reality (AR) and/or Virtual Reality (VR) during Minimally invasive surgery (MIS) have turned into a prominent research subject in the recent years. These technologies provide noteworthy advantages to the patients and the clinicians, by providing significant additional data during MIS. In this way, a priori information known to the surgeon preoperatively (segmented anatomical structures of interest and lesions) can be superimposed semi-transparently on the directly visible tissues. This process can lead to higher preservation rates of healthy tissue and shorter post surgical recovery periods. The paper at hand is a survey investigating research efforts that have been conducted in the recent years in terms of utilization of AR and VR in laparoscopic and arthroscopic MIS.