How a hologram can show a patient’s heart during surgery

Jennifer and Jon Silva, a husband and wife team working at Washington University in St Louis in the United States, have developed a hologram that visualises a patient’s heart while they are in the operating theatre.

It is designed to provide real-time information in 3D and a direct view of internal tools, such as catheters. Initial tests have shown, for the first time, that holograms can improve accuracy when used during minimally invasive surgery to treat arrhythmias (heart rhythm problems).

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Video by Jennifer Green, interview by Ania Lichtarowicz.