Virtual Digital Defogging Technology Improves Laparoscopic Imaging Quality

Background. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of a newly developed digital defogging (DD) system on imaging quality in laparoscopic surgery. Lens fogging instantly degrades image quality and interrupts the flow of surgical maneuvers during laparoscopic surgery. To address this problem, we developed a DD system based on the dark channel prior. Methods. Two hundred patients with gallstones or right colon cancer were enrolled in this study. Of the 100 patients who underwent laparoscopic cholecystectomy, 50 used a regular monitor (group A) while the other 50 used a DD monitor (group B). Of the 100 patients who underwent laparoscopic colectomy, the regular monitor was used for 50 (group C) and the DD monitor was used for the other 50 (group D). The clarity of images, the ratio of lens-cleaned time to operative time, and the subjective anxiety of the surgeons were evaluated for all cases. Results. There were significant differences (P < .05) in the clarity of images between groups C (2.68 ± 1.19) and D (1.98 ± 1.00) and the ratio of lens-cleaned time to operative time between groups C (5.22 ± 0.89) and D (4.14 ± 0.85). Moreover, the DD system significantly reduced the subjective anxiety of the surgeons (P < .001) in colectomy procedures, compared with the regular monitor. Conclusions. The DD system can export a dynamic stable image to the monitor during laparoscopic surgery, which can result in shorter operative time with less surgeon anxiety.

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