The first remotely controlled intercontinental keratoconus telesurgery operation was successfully carried out, connecting the iRes®2 laser from iVis Technologies in 5G, installed in the operating room of the eye clinic of the Bari Polyclinic where the patient was located, with the control station located in Dubai and guided in real time by prof. Giovanni Alessio, director of the operational unit of the University Hospital of Bari.
The intervention took place during the WKC (World Keratoconus Congress), in the presence of over 200 international ophthalmic surgeons and experts in the field, gathered to discuss advanced technologies for the treatment of keratoconus and ectatic pathologies.
The operated patient was suffering from advanced keratoconus, a developmental pathology that causes a visual deficit that cannot be corrected with glasses and which, if left untreated, can lead to a corneal transplant. In the days before surgery, he underwent a series of diagnostic tests which allowed us to determine the stage and extent of the pathology and plan the treatment.
During the operation the patient was assisted in the operating room by a dedicated team and the remote connection was made possible thanks to TIM’s 5G technology which, in collaboration with Ericsson, installed the infrastructure that made it possible to maintain an adequate transmission latency between the control station and the laser to guarantee perfect synchrony between remote commands and action.
