AI guidance for robot-assisted eye surgery

Project Information

GEYEDANCE

Grant agreement ID: 101070443

DOI

10.3030/101070443

Project closed

EC signature date 30 May 2022

Start date 1 September 2022

End date 31 August 2025

Funded under

• Digital, Industry and Space

Total cost

€ 2 717 717,50

EU contribution

€ 2 457 203,50

Coordinated by

ACMIT GMBH
Austria

Periodic Reporting for period 2 - GEYEDANCE (AI guidance for robot-assisted eye surgery)

Reporting period: 2024-03-01 to 2025-08-31

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

Retina indications are the leading cause of visual impairment in industrialized countries and posing a big unmet socio-economic challenge. Performing surgical actions directly at the retina - one of the most delicate and sensitive areas of the human body - with ultra-thin microsurgical instruments and with a limited view makes retina surgery a very challenging discipline with surgeons working at the limit of what is possible, requiring years of training and experience to reach proficiency.

GEYEDANCE is directly addressing this need by translating methods from Artificial Intelligence to the area of surgical robotics, together to be used for an advanced user support for reducing the mental and physical load of the surgeon. This AI-based surgical platform ideally connects novel sensing for an improved view of the surgical field with robotic technology that facilitates safe steering of the surgical instrument and thus helps to increase reproducibility and finally leads to less surgical trauma, improved safety margins, and better surgical outcomes.

Project objectives are as follows:
• Robust, reliable, and safe real-time, intraocular AI-based measurement of retinal geometry
• AI-based robotic assistance for safe and efficient surgery
• Integration of the system components to the "GEYEDANCE Solution" for eye surgery including validation under clinical conditions
• Preparation of successful exploitation of the "GEYEDANCE Solution"

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

The project work has started with a thorough analysis of the two selected clinical procedures, i.e. vitrectomy and membrane peeling. Each particular step of the two procedures has been analyzed in terms of potential hazards and desired (AI) support. Based on the resulting clinical needs, a set of system requirements has been derived which is guiding the development phase and the final verification & validation phase in the project.
Main results of the project include:
*) a dedicated Common-Path OCT system for fiber-based in vivo scanning,
*) a concept and prototypes for the integration of OCT scanning features into a set of eye-surgical tools,
*) a GEYEDANCE R&D Solution as a testbed for efficient application prototyping and verification, and
*) a GEYEDANCE Clnical Solution that integrates the developed GEYEDANCE System with the Preceyes Surgical System (PPS) - all validated in a living animal trial series.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

With GEYEDANCE, the following scientific, economic and societal effects can be expected:
• Breakthrough integration of AI methods and medical robotics to provide more reliable tools for eye surgery
• Availability of relevant real-world data sets via open-access platforms
• Establishment of a best-practice platform for the integration of AI methods and medical robotics in a wider context
• Improved positioning of the European medical robotics industry in international competition
• Decreased number of people suffering from severe visual impairment and reduction of corresponding (in)direct societal and medical costs

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