- The European project ‘VEMoS (Virtual Eye Model System)’ will simulate corneal and intraocular refractive surgery techniques using artificial intelligence
Dr. Jorge Alió is the Clinical Director of the European project named ‘VEMoS (Virtual Eye Model System)’, which he has carried out together with Vissum Ophthalmological Institute of Alicante (Grupo Miranza) and Laurent Bataille, the research and development director, who has coordinated it.
This complex software is used to digitally simulate a three-dimensional eye, based on the diagnostic tests of the patient, to study its visual quality in detail. The program operates by tracing light rays that pass through that virtual reproduction of the eye, thus enabling us to examine the optometric and biometric characteristics that determine the quality of vision.
Dr. Alió, the professor of ophthalmology at the Miguel Hernández University (UMH), has been participating in this project since last year. In the second phase, the team is going to intend to take one more step further and, using artificial intelligence, simulate different intraocular and corneal refractive surgery techniques to analyze their results before their actual application in an operating theatre.
In this way, ophthalmologists like Alió, using objective data, will be able to evaluate which technique is going to give better results based on the specific characteristics of the eye to be operated on. As a result, it will be a powerful aid tool, which will allow ophthalmologists to offer the best indications for surgical treatment in each case.
The commercialization of the project is expected in 2022. It should be mentioned, that the following organizations have participated in the creation of the project: the Italian company CSO, which specializes in design and manufacture of ophthalmic instruments, and promotes the new diagnostic device, which has been patented for the project; the ophthalmology departments of CHUC (Centro Hospitalar e Universitário de Coimbra, Portugal) and AUH (Aarhus University Hospital, Denmark), which were in charge of carrying out independent clinical tests; and Vissum (Grupo Miranza), which has developed the software.
The main objective of the project is to mature, expand and certify the production of the VEMoS system, which is aimed at ophthalmology clinics. In addition, it is intended to standardize decision-making in refractive surgery and to revolutionize the field of refractive surgery by personalized treatment. The project is carried out in accordance with the European Community action plan for the personalized medicine.
