Laboratory Investigation of 3-D versus 2-D Visualization in Endoscopic Skull Base Surgery

Abstract

Introduction: This study compares subject performance of visuospatial tasks and subjective experience between a standard 2-D endoscope versus a prototype 3-D endoscope. The prototype 3-D neuroendoscope performs real-time light field processing to generate a 3-D image using a single lens and camera system. By eliminating possible image alignment errors, a putative advantage is the reduction of asthenopia and fatigue often associated with image misalignment during 3-D viewing, as the paired images generated by this technology are always aligned. In addition, with a single lens there is no post-image capture processing required and therefore the endoscope is fully compatible with all existing high-definition (HD) 1920 × 1080 pixel resolution cameras.