Schwab K, Smith R, Brown V, Whyte M, Jourdan I. Evolution of stereoscopic imaging in surgery and recent advances. World J Gastrointest Endosc 2017; 9(8): 368-377 [PMID: 28874957 DOI: 10.4253/wjge.v9.i8.368]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Iain Jourdan, Consultant Laparoscopic Colorectal Surgeon and Senior Tutor, Minimal Access Therapy Training Unit, Post Graduate Medical School, University of Surrey, Manor Park, Guildford, Surrey GU2 7WG, United Kingdom. iainjourdan@hotmail.com
Research Domain of This Article
Gastroenterology & Hepatology
Article-Type of This Article
Minireviews
Open-Access Policy of This Article
This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
World J Gastrointest Endosc. Aug 16, 2017; 9(8): 368-377 Published online Aug 16, 2017. doi: 10.4253/wjge.v9.i8.368
Evolution of stereoscopic imaging in surgery and recent advances
Katie Schwab, Ralph Smith, Vanessa Brown, Martin Whyte, Iain Jourdan
Katie Schwab, Ralph Smith, Vanessa Brown, Iain Jourdan, Minimal Access Therapy Training Unit, Post Graduate Medical School, University of Surrey, Guildford, Surrey GU2 7WG, United Kingdom
Martin Whyte, Department of Nutritional Sciences, School of Biosciences and Medicine, University of Surrey, Guildford, Surrey GU2 7XH, United Kingdom
Author contributions: Schwab K wrote the initial paper; Smith R, Brown V, Whyte M and Jourdan I contributed to revisions and creation of the final version.
Conflict-of-interest statement: Authors declare no conflict of interests for this article.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Correspondence to: Iain Jourdan, Consultant Laparoscopic Colorectal Surgeon and Senior Tutor, Minimal Access Therapy Training Unit, Post Graduate Medical School, University of Surrey, Manor Park, Guildford, Surrey GU2 7WG, United Kingdom. iainjourdan@hotmail.com
Telephone: +44-1483-688691 Fax: +44-1483-688633
Received: January 28, 2017 Peer-review started: February 12, 2017 First decision: April 18, 2017 Revised: May 21, 2017 Accepted: June 30, 2017 Article in press: July 3, 2017 Published online: August 16, 2017
Abstract
In the late 1980s the first laparoscopic cholecystectomies were performed prompting a sudden rise in technological innovations as the benefits and feasibility of minimal access surgery became recognised. Monocular laparoscopes provided only two-dimensional (2D) viewing with reduced depth perception and contributed to an extended learning curve. Attention turned to producing a usable three-dimensional (3D) endoscopic view for surgeons; utilising different technologies for image capture and image projection. These evolving visual systems have been assessed in various research environments with conflicting outcomes of success and usability, and no overall consensus to their benefit. This review article aims to provide an explanation of the different types of technologies, summarise the published literature evaluating 3D vs 2D laparoscopy, to explain the conflicting outcomes, and discuss the current consensus view.
Core tip: Capture of true stereopsis from the operative field is crucial for the subsequent projection of a high quality stereoptic image. The latest three-dimensional (3D) systems using dual channel stereoendoscopes and passive polarizing stereoscopic projection generate high quality 3D images for minimally invasive surgery. There is subjective and objective laboratory based evidence supporting use of 3D vs two-dimensional for surgeons of all experience. However, their clinical application has yet to be addressed with Level 1 evidence.
