Surgical Theater scored FDA clearance for its 3D, augmented reality surgical navigation advanced platform (SNAP) for operating room procedures.
The company’s SNAP device combines flight simulation technology and advanced CT/MRI imaging to allow physicians to perform a real-life “fly through” of surgery, and provides virtual reality guidance to help determine the best way to remove tumors or treat heart defects. Surgeons can rotate images from a patient’s CT/MRI scan or make them semi-transparent to see behind arteries and other critical structures, increasing accuracy during complex procedures, the Cleveland, OH-based company said in a statement. SNAP’s virtual reality element also helps physicians run through potential scenarios prior to making the first incision.
“It is just like watching a football game when multiple cameras are located around the arena and an editor can freeze the image, rotate, zoom in, zoom out and see things that he could not otherwise see,” Dr. Warren Selman, one of the company’s founders and chairman of the department of neurological surgery at UH Case Medical Center, said in a statement.
