Recent technological advances have spurred the use of stereoscopic displays, motion sensors, microcomputing, and other wearable gadgets for visualization in hospitals, Siegel told AuntMinnie.com. As an intrinsically visual field, radiology is primed to transition to the use of high-resolution computer monitors, keyboards, and other input devices.
"The increasing demand for augmented and virtual reality presents us with the opportunity to completely rethink our image interpretation environment and create a virtual set of monitors and other paradigms for image display without the constraints of room size, brightness, or location," he said.
But what effect is this transition having on radiologists? And how might it affect their performance?
Virtual and augmented reality will provide radiologists with more flexibility in terms of where to review images and how to visualize them, according to Siegel.
"Through eye tracking, the systems will be more responsive to what the radiologists are looking at, which, in turn, will lead to improved performance and stress reduction," he said.
Siegel will present various virtual and augmented reality devices that can potentially benefit interventional radiologists, too. As an example, image segmentation and registration with this technology may be able to overlay previous imaging studies onto the patient in real-time, which could reduce operating time and exposure to radiation, he explained.
"We believe that [augmented reality] and [virtual reality] will result in fundamental and important changes in the practice of diagnostic and interventional radiology," he said.
