EYESIM: Cataract Surgery Simulator

Details
Funded by: DIES Group	Reference: DIES2
Start: 2005-01-01	Duration: 9+6 months
Partners
Coordinator: CRS4	Italy

Abstract

The word cataract is used to describe a natural eye lens that has turned cloudy. Cataracts are not a disease, but rather a condition affecting the eye, which causes gradual impairment of vision. The development of cataracts is a normal part of the aging process, but they can result from a number of other reasons. If left untreated, cataracts can cause needless blindness. The more efficient solution for restoring vision consists of extracting the cataract and substituting it with an intraocular lens, or IOL. Modern advances in micro-surgical techniques permit cataracts to be removed safely and are very successful in restoring vision. Nowadays, they are probably the most frequently performed surgery in the world. Considering the diffusion and the complexity of the specialty, training is considered very important. In this context, the usage of Virtual Reality based training systems would greatly help in improving the learning curves and the quality of apprenticeship. In this project, we study and develop specialized physically-based simulations of the capsulorhexis and phacoemulsication tasks, as well as simple geometric simulations of corneal incision. Our combined simulator runs on a multiprocessing PC platform and provides realistic visual feedback with real-time interaction. The simulator is used in the industry as a component of ophtalmology training applications.

Publications

	[1] Marco Agus, Enrico Gobbetti, Giovanni Pintore, Gianluigi Zanetti, and Antonio Zorcolo. Real Time Simulation of Phaco-emulsification for Cataract Surgery Training. In Workshop in Virtual Reality Interactions and Physical Simulations (VRIPHYS 2006), November 2006. Eurographics Association. Conference held in Madrid, Spain, November 6-7.
	[2] Marco Agus, Enrico Gobbetti, Giovanni Pintore, Gianluigi Zanetti, and Antonio Zorcolo. Real-time Cataract Surgery Simulation for Training. In Eurographics Italian Chapter Conference. Eurographics Association, 2006.

Related videos

	Marco Agus, Fabio Bettio, Enrico Gobbetti, Giovanni Pintore, Gianluigi Zanetti, and Antonio Zorcolo Real time Cataract Surgery Simulation for Training CRS4 Video n. 133 - Date: 02/2006 Presented at Eurographics Italian Chapter Conference. Eurographics Association, 2006.
	Marco Agus, Fabio Bettio, Enrico Gobbetti, Giovanni Pintore, and Antonio Zorcolo Cataract Surgery Simulation: Corneal Incision and Capsulorhexis CRS4 Video n. 130 - Date: 05/2005