Frederick Van Gestel of the Free University of Brussels and colleagues conducted pilot clinical trials of an augmented reality system for external ventricular drainage (EVD). After constructing a 3D model of the brain's ventricles based on computed tomography (CT) data, 11 patients underwent drainage using the HoloLens 2 AR system with high-precision infrared instrument tracking, and the same number of patients underwent the procedure without AR. The trial results were published in the journal Neurosurgery.
Functional drainage placement (its penetration into any of the lateral ventricles of the brain) was achieved on the first attempt in all patients in the study group and in seven (64%) in the control group; successful (reaching the target ventricle) — in nine (82%) versus five (45%); optimal (no contact with the ventricular wall) — in eight (73%) versus three (27%); suboptimal — in two (18%) versus five (45%), and unsuccessful — in a single patient from the control group. Repeat intervention was required in 36% of cases after conventional intervention and in none after the one performed using the augmented reality system. Complications related to the procedure developed in two patients from the study group and in five from the control group. The obtained results provided a basis for starting multicenter randomized controlled trials.
