Saarbrücken Hospital in Germany is utilizing AI software for complicated operations. It can be used with smart glasses before and during surgery, giving doctors added certainty.
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00:00 It's a matter of life and death at the Saarbrücken clinic this morning.
00:07 A woman has to have a fist-sized tumour removed from her salivary gland.
00:12 Preparations are underway in the operating room.
00:23 Surgeon Gregor Stavroy is getting ready for the operation. He's using data goggles and a newly developed artificial intelligence system.
00:33 The critical point in the operation is this area of central vessels and there's no room for error.
00:41 If you cut the hepatic artery, it would end in disaster for the patient.
00:46 This means that the patient would probably bleed to death.
00:52 AI is an additional safety feature.
00:55 With its help, the tumour can be seen from all sides in a 3D graphic.
01:00 That helps prepare the right incisions and identify the delicate areas.
01:05 The challenge with this operation is that the tumour is extremely large.
01:09 It's also very close to vital blood vessels that supply the liver, for example.
01:15 AI has hardly ever been used in medicine.
01:18 The idea for using learning software in the operating room came from this young programmer.
01:23 She's the driving force behind the technology.
01:26 I think it was a bit of my personal hobby to get a bit into the medical domain.
01:31 Because it's a shame that there is no connection between technology and the medical domain so much.
01:37 Because the technology is very advanced, but the medical is not following up.
01:42 I guess the devices, the technology that's being used, I thought, why not to have it in the medical domain?
01:50 The surgeon is very experienced.
01:54 He has already removed countless tumours in more than 20 years.
01:58 But he's open to new technologies in the operating room.
02:02 The IT specialist is present and monitors the software.
02:07 At the moment, artificial intelligence is still in the pilot phase and is being further developed with each operation.
02:14 The assistant doctor is also equipped with data goggles.
02:23 That means two surgeons have the procedure under control.
02:27 Millimetres can make the difference between life and death when removing a tumour.
02:32 The vital arteries must not be severed.
02:36 AI enables more precise control of exactly where handles and cuts need to be applied.
02:43 With the help of computer-controlled glasses, the 3D image of the tumour and the blood vessels is mirrored onto the patient's surgical site.
02:51 So now he's able to see those arteries and where they're about.
02:59 So it helps him to not cut or be cautious when he's near the vessels.
03:06 So it helps him to prevent bad events and accidents.
03:11 After more than three hours, the tumour is removed and the patient is doing well.
03:16 Artificial intelligence learns with every operation.
03:19 Together with the surgeon's expertise, the software is constantly evolving.
03:24 Human error in the operating room can have fatal consequences. Technology minimises the risk.
03:30 I have to honestly say that I was quite satisfied.
03:36 You could see the structures and where they were, and that was a great help.
03:41 In the end, it was much easier surgically than we thought from the images.
03:46 But it was exactly right, which was a great help.
03:50 Especially in the middle where the large tumour had displaced the vessels.
03:55 That was really helpful.
03:59 The next step will be to use AI for operations on moving organs, such as the heart.
04:07 [Music plays]