VR in the OR

On April 14, Medical Realities will host what it claims is the first live Virtual Reality stream of a surgical procedure.

The company describes the operation -- the removal of a tumour -- as a standard surgical procedure. And, to watch it in 360-degree, immersive video, all that is needed is the free Medical Realities app and a smartphone-compatible headset such as Google Cardboard.

The idea behind the stream, which won't be 100% live -- there will be a short delay in case any medical complications arise during the procedure -- is to highlight the huge impact that VR could have as a training and educational aid, particularly in the medical profession. Medical Realities is already using VR for creating training simulators for medical students.