Championing Change in Medical Imaging and Care Delivery with Augmented Imaging

Charles “Chuck” Martin, MD, is a Vascular and Interventional Radiologist at The Cleveland Clinic, where he currently serves as the Director of the Interventional Oncology subgroup, and the IR liaison to the Clinic’s HHT Center of Excellence. He is an Assistant Professor at The Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine, is involved in multiple additional educational activities with the Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology residents, the medical students of the CCF Lerner College of Medicine, as well as his clinical colleagues. 

He completed his undergraduate studies at The Johns Hopkins University, and medical school at Case Western Reserve University. After completing his Diagnostic Radiology residency at University Hospitals Case Medical Center, he obtained subspecialty fellowship training in Vascular and Interventional Radiology at Yale University/Yale New Haven Hospital. He also currently serves as Chair of the Medical Advisory Board of MediView XR, Inc, as well as the Principal Investigator of their clinical studies and leads their clinical initiatives and implementation of their technology. 

If one thing is certain in medical practice, it is that change is constant. Technologies are ever-evolving and enhancing the capabilities of clinicians every day. I have witnessed tremendous transformation in the imaging space – from 64-slice CT scanners when I was training to the scanners of today, performing many multiples of that. 

Today, I observe even newer technologies being developed to improve visualization and unlock the greater potential of imaging – and one of the most unique is augmented reality (AR). Rarely does advancement have such potential to fundamentally transform medical practice. It is a generational opportunity, it is exciting, and it is happening now. 

For decades, clinicians have been faced with the long-standing limitations of current imaging technologies. Practitioners are challenged with reviewing 2D images on flat-panel monitors when they must operate on complex 3D patient anatomy. This can make planning and execution difficult. But researchers have demonstrated in a growing body of evidence that AR can bring that multi-dimensionality back to the procedure and allow physicians to see the pathology in real-time.  

AR offers something that has never existed in medical imaging and navigation: the ability to see 3D data with depth and spatial orientation.  Where we once had to review a CT one slice at a time, we can now simultaneously visualize an entire CT volumetric data set and appreciate the true context of a patient’s unique internal anatomy.  AR-based surgical navigation technologies provide the ability for practitioners to perform procedures with increased confidence when navigating their tools to the targeted anatomy.  Through AR-based 3D imaging and needle guidance, they can perform minimally invasive procedures with enhanced spatial and depth perception for targeting and avoiding critical structures. 

The cases we, as interventional radiologists, face can be extremely complex, but with this type of technology, there is the possibility to conduct these procedures in a minimally invasive manner, more safely and more efficiently. Further, with improved visualization and guidance, clinicians may be able to confidently treat ever complex cases, thereby making more patients eligible for treatments. 

The most forward-thinking institutions and interventional radiologists are already using holographic surgical technologies to conduct ablations and biopsies. But we’re also seeing growing demand for additional surgical applications and specialties. I am equally eager to see how these technologies can work to further enhance the patient experience as well through education and treatment visualization. 

As such technologies become more widely adopted, my advice to clinicians and health care systems is this: Champion AR and these evolving tools and consider how they can be used in your practice - from the smallest instances to more advanced treatments. There will always be an initial hesitation toward such change, but through understanding how the technology has advanced and using a technology from a reputable company, there is great opportunity to be part of this unprecedented evolution in medical visualization and democratized care.