Smart glasses improve success of radial arterial catheterization in small children: Study

Korea: A recent study in the journal Anesthesiology has reported that the use of smart glasses could improve the first-attempt success rate and ergonomic satisfaction in ultrasound-guided radial arterial catheterization in small pediatric patients. It also reduced the first-attempt procedure time and overall complication rates.

The success of delicate ultrasound-guided medical procedures is largely determined by hand-eye coordination and ergonomics. This can be improved by using smart glasses (head-mounted displays) which decrease the head movement on the ultrasound screen. In pediatric patients with small body sizes, there is a limited space allowed for the anesthetic procedure, and the position and posture of the operator must be adjusted accordingly. 

Against the above background, Jin-Tae Kim, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea, and colleagues hypothesized that smart glasses could improve the success rate of ultrasound-guided pediatric radial arterial catheterization.

To test their hypothesis, they designed a prospective, single-blinded, randomized controlled, single-center study enrolling 116 pediatric patients (age less than 2 yr) requiring radial artery cannulation during general anesthesia. They were randomized into the ultrasound screen group (control) or the smart glasses group. Following induction of general anesthesia, ultrasound-guided radial artery catheterization was performed.