International. Pioneering surgeons at the University Medical Center Utrecht (UMC Utrecht) have been the first to use Polycom's video solutions to broadcast a live 3D operation. The procedure was a middle ear surgery called a stapedotomy that involved replacing one of the ossicles of an Otosclerosis patient.
Professor Wilko Grolman, Head of the Department of Otolaryngology and Head of Head and Neck Surgery at the University Medical Center Utrecht, was in charge of carrying out the operation that was broadcast to thousands of viewers.
While performing the surgery using a microscope, the surgeon had a stereoscopic 3D view of the surgical field. The image viewed through the microscope was shared via videoconference with the team and residents, who normally could only see the surgery in 2D.
Using Polycom's video solutions, the images could be viewed in 3D, making it possible to have the same vision and experience as the surgeon himself. "This is a revolution for medical education! The ability to see in 3D what the surgeon is seeing through the microscope will greatly improve medical education," says Professor Grolman.
Choosing Polycom to facilitate knowledge sharing and education
UMC Utrecht is not new to discovering the benefits of video solutions for broadcasting and recording surgeries in order to improve medical education. Professor Grolman, co-founder of the Live International Otolaryngology Network (LION), is dedicated to providing continuing medical and surgical education programs with the highest quality. Annually, LION organizes multiple live ear surgery events that are publicly available and aimed at Otolaryngology residents.
3D vision changes the game
Professor Grolman performed a stapedotomy on two patients suffering from Otosclerosis. The surgery consists of the removal of the stirrup, one of the bones of the middle ear, which is fixed in the inner ear and involves a loss of hearing. The extracted part is replaced with a very small prosthesis, the stirrup bone that is subtracted is approximately 3.5 mm in height. He used a ZEISS Trenion HD 3D operating microscope to perform the surgery, and Polycom's video solutions were used to spread the surgery to thousands of residents and medical students. For the first time, residents who are learning these procedures witnessed stereoscopic 3D vision identical to that of the operating surgeon himself.
"This revolutionary approach to teaching surgery will not only give students a better understanding of what it is, but will also help residents perform the procedure on their own. And by having the exact view of the microscope on my screen, I was even able to guide them better and give them better instructions. I am very happy with this important advance that Polycom offers us. For us it is a very significant game changer," confirms Professor Grolman.
