Google Glass to Aid Surgeons

When Thad Starner '91, SM '95, PhD '99 created his first wearable computer as an undergraduate, he hoped it would help him take notes in class without having to divert his eyes from the board. As the technical lead and manager on Google’s Project Glass, Starner brought that ability to the rest of the world—and Google Glass has proved particularly helpful to surgeons who don't want to divert their eyes from the operating table.

Many surgeons have used the device to take video of their surgeries for use as teaching tools, or even to communicate with other doctors, but cardiothoracic surgeon Pierre Theodore, MD has begun to use his Glass as a reference tool as well.

"To be able to have those X-rays directly in your field [of vision] without having to leave the operating room or to log on to another system elsewhere, or to turn yourself away from the patient in order to divert your attention, is very helpful in terms of maintaining your attention where it should be, which is on the patient 100 percent of the time," Theodore explained in a Health Canal feature story.

Watch how surgeons make use of Google Glass's teleconferencing features via this UAB News footage, in which orthopedic surgeon Brent Ponce, MD operates on a patient in Alabama while consulting with a Georgia-based colleague Phani Dantuluri, MD.