Exclusive New Video of Prize Winning X-Ray Surgery Vision System

Another exclusive docinthemachine first. Here is a link to view the prize winning video of my research on the development of an autofluorescent endoscopy system. The details of the research can be found here.

This research was honored with awards at the recent annual meetings of the AAGL (American Association of Gynecologic Laparoscopists), ASRM (Americal Society for Reproductive Medicine) , and SLS (Society of Laparoendoscopic Surgeons).

This is yet another example of what I call “Future Vision - The Coming Radical Transformation of Surgery”

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Details of the Project:

The new “keyhole” surgery technique enables surgeons to see tumors and other pathologies, including endometriosis not otherwise visible. In traditional laparoscopy, the telescope provides the same view as would be seen with the naked eye. In the new method, highly specific filters are incorporated into the light system and telescope so that surgeons can see the tiny amounts of fluorescent light that all living human tissues give off when illuminated, a phenomenon called “autofluorescence”.

The system illuminates tissues with short wavelength blue light (380-450 nm). The tissues absorb this light and then release it as longer wavelength green light (>470 nm).

Normal and diseased tissues give off different amounts of light. Areas of disease that block fluorescence are seen as dark indigo areas, whereas those that emit fluorescence glow like a firefly. With this new surgical technique I can see disease that is otherwise invisible and treat the patient more effectively.

My study reported on the use of the autofluorescence system for the diagnosis of endometriosis, a potentially debilitating disease that affects 5.5 million women in the United States, causing infertility and chronic pelvic pain. We found additional disease using the system in 63% of the women with endometriosis examined