This session explored AI applications from the moment a patient enters the clinic, through diagnosis, surgery, and post-visit documentation. Speakers discussed AI-powered ingestion processes, improvements in image processing and visualization of pathology, and intraoperative innovations. Industry leaders Intuitive Surgical and Theator introduced advanced platforms including an agent AI system that can generate surgical notes directly from case insights and surgical videos. These tools are now increasingly natively integrated into electronic health records, such as Epic, reducing the burden of documentation by allowing physicians to work completely within their existing workflows. Additional insights came from Suki, which demonstrated an ambient AI solution that extends beyond dictation to clinical decision support, including automated ordering based on doctor-patient conversations. Overall, this session highlighted how rapidly evolving AI technologies are addressing long-standing inefficiencies in urological care.
Mr. Khandekar also discussed two major areas where augmented reality (AR) is currently being applied in clinical practice. Clinics are using AR to improve patient understanding of complex diagnoses. By converting CT or MRI scans into interactive 3D AR models viewed through HoloLens, patients can spatially visualize tumors, explore surrounding vascular structures, and better understand surgical decision-making. Early data from a study of 30 patients showed significant improvements in understanding without increasing anxiety. In the procedural setting, AR for prostate biopsies is being investigated by applying FDA-approved cranial and spinal navigation techniques. AI-generated lesion models from MRI data allow physicians to visualize targets in three dimensions and align them directly with the patient’s anatomy. Although still in the proof-of-concept stage, these AR-guided workflows are expected to have broader applications in urology, with prostate biopsies potentially becoming mainstream in the coming years.
