Augmented reality helps protect against X-rays

In a hospital, various medical professionals are exposed to an increased risk from X-rays, including radiologists. For this reason, they receive special radiation protection training. Scientists from the Lucerne Cantonal Hospital (LUKS), the Department of Informatics at the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts (HSLU) and the Faculty of Health Sciences and Medicine at the University of Lucerne are currently researching how this could be enriched with interactive, digital teaching techniques. As part of a joint project, they are developing and testing training courses based on augmented reality (AR) technology - the projection of digital content into the real world. Special AR glasses are used for this. For the first time, they can be used to virtually "see" the simulated radiation exposure in the room and practice protecting oneself even better against it, as the HSLU writes.

Location-independent, safe and repeatable

"The biggest challenge in radiation protection is that you can neither perceive the radiation itself nor the effectiveness of your own protective behavior in everyday work," explains Thiago Lima, Senior Diagnostic Medical Physicist at LUKS. He is conducting the project as part of his postdoctoral studies at the University of Lucerne; it is partially funded by the Swiss Society for Radiobiology and Medical Physics (SGSMP) research grant. "AR enables employees exposed to radiation to learn important practices to further reduce occupational health risks," Lima said. For Tobias Kreienbühl, project manager on the part of HSLU, augmented reality also has great potential in medical education. "An important advantage is that the technology is independent of time and place," he elaborates, "so you don't have to rely on specially equipped premises for training." With AR, learning content can be conveyed realistically and without safety concerns, while exercises can also be repeated as often as desired, according to the media release.

Merging the real and virtual world

The training method developed in the project runs as follows: The medical professional puts on the AR glasses, which are equipped with cameras and various sensors. An application developed at the HSLU runs on them. Thus, through the transparent glasses, one sees both the real objects in the room and virtual overlays. The latter include an X-ray machine, an examination table with a patient and a lead shield. Those who wear the glasses can change the position of the virtual shield by means of movements. Such protective shields, which block X-rays, are also used in real operations.

Radiation exposure visible at the push of a button

In training, you are then given the task of placing the virtual protective shield, yourself and an assistant who is present in real life, in the best possible position for a particular operation. "That means in such a way that the radiation exposure for both people would be as small as possible," explains Tobias Kreienbühl. The real highlight: At the push of a button, the AR glasses can also display the - simulated - intensity of the radiation at any point in the room. This is done with the help of a virtual color gradient. Red stands for high, blue for low exposure (see figure below). This makes it easy to see visually that the radiation is emitted into the room by the patient in a spherical shape.

Everything in the blue range?

After the spectacle wearer has performed the specified task, the radiation simulation is displayed and the result is checked. Ideally, everyone present is in the blue range. Different runs can be tested, positions corrected; the protective shield can also be repositioned. The color gradient adjusts in real time so that the effect of each change is immediately visible.

The first tests were successful, according to the press release. The conclusion: the method is feasible and promising. Now the research team will gather further experience from the application and develop it further. "Our goal is to prove the effectiveness of the trainings compared to conventional trainings without augmented reality," Lima said. If successful, LUKS will look at how augmented reality can be incorporated into radiation safety training in the long term.

The "Immersive Realities Center" of the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts