Virtual reality in preoperative imaging in maxillofacial surgery: implementation of "the next level"?
A K Bartella 1, M Kamal 2, I Scholl 3, S Schiffer 4, J Steegmann 5, D Ketelsen 6, F Hölzle 7, B Lethaus 8
Affiliations
Affiliations
- Department of Oral, Maxillofacial and Plastic Facial Surgery, University Hospital of Aachen University, Pauwelsstraße 30, Aachen 52074, Germany; Department of Oral, Maxillofacial and Plastik Facial Surgery, University Hospital of Leipzig University, Liebigstraße 12, Leipzig 04103, Germany. Electronic address: abartella@ukaachen.de.
- Department of Surgical Sciences, Faculty of Dentistry, Kuwait University, Safat, Kuwait. Electronic address: mkamal@ukaachen.de.
- Aachen University of Applied Sciences, Postbox 100 560, Aachen 52005, Germany. Electronic address: scholl@fh-aachen.de.
- Aachen University of Applied Sciences, Postbox 100 560, Aachen 52005, Germany. Electronic address: s.schiffer@fh-aachen.de.
- Department of Oral, Maxillofacial and Plastic Facial Surgery, University Hospital of Aachen University, Pauwelsstraße 30, Aachen 52074, Germany. Electronic address: jsteegmann@ukaachen.de.
- University of Tuebingen, Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology, Hoppe-Seyler-Str. 3, Tuebingen 72076, Germany. Electronic address: dominik.ketelsen@ihre-radiologen.de.
- Department of Oral, Maxillofacial and Plastic Facial Surgery, University Hospital of Aachen University, Pauwelsstraße 30, Aachen 52074, Germany. Electronic address: fhoelzle@ukaachen.de.
- Department of Oral, Maxillofacial and Plastik Facial Surgery, University Hospital of Leipzig University, Liebigstraße 12, Leipzig 04103, Germany. Electronic address: blethaus@ukaachen.de.
Abstract
Not only are current imaging techniques - cone-beam computed tomography (CT), CT, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) - becoming more precise in capturing data, but the illustration and interpretation of the acquired images is no longer limited to conventional display screens or projectors. The so-called "virtual reality" (VR) glasses have the potential to engage the viewer in a 3-dimensional space, and ultimately to enable evaluation of the reconstructed anatomical structures from a new perspective. For the first time in the field of oral and maxillofacial surgery (OMFS), a 3-dimensional imaging dataset (cone-beam CT, CT, and MRI) can be evaluated by using VR glasses. A medical student, an OMFS resident, and an OMFS consultant rated the preoperative usability of VR glasses to improve the operative understanding of three cases: a deeply impacted wisdom tooth, a fracture of the lower jaw, and an oncological resection. VR glasses seem to help to simplify operations and give the surgeon a good preoperative overview of the intraoperative findings, particularly in the evaluation of impacted teeth and hard tissue structures. In addition, VR glasses seem to be a promising innovation to help in the training of surgical residents and to teach students. However, the more experienced the surgeon, the smaller is the additional value of VR glasses. Preoperative examination using VR glasses can aid better understanding and planning of the surgical site in the future, and is an innovative piece of advanced technology for displaying CT, cone-beam CT, and MRI anatomical data.
Keywords: CT; MRI; Preoperative Planning; VR; Virtual Reality.
References
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/