Metaverse in healthcare

The Greek word meta (μετα) implies “with, among, after, beyond”, in other words transcending reality, as in the term metaphysics. When Zuckerberg rechristened Facebook (the world’s most populated country) into META, he obviously knew what he was doing – getting future ready. USD 10 billion has been diverted into the Metaverse Division alone. Fortune Business Insights reports that of the USD 4.1-trillion healthcare system globally, digital health will be USD 9.13 billion by 2027, with a CAGR of 13.4 percent. Metaverse is an augmented reality (AR)/virtual reality (VR) interface, where users are immersed in visual, auditory, and haptic sensors to meet other users within a virtually-augmented world. There is a tremendous untapped potential in healthcare to use AR, VR, augmented and extended VR, Internet of Medical Things (IoMT), Web 3.0, I Cloud, EDGE, quantum and spatial computing, robotics and artificial intelligence. Augmentation with Web 3 standards like Blockchain facilitate ownership, online payments, and traceability. Virtual activities provide real experiences and results in the real world. Metaverse will change relationship between people and technology. Users will experience themselves within or alongside virtual content, rather than just interacting with digital products and solutions.

History of metaverse. The term metaverse was first used in a science fiction novel Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson. In 1999, The Matrix was released in theaters, featuring characters who did not know that they were part of a simulated reality world. In 2003, several virtual-reality video games were released. From 2011, novels appeared sporadically, featuring metaverse. In 2021, Facebook was renamed as META.

Uses of metaverse in healthcare. It is likely that my great grandchildren will have a digital twin in the virtual world. Every single bit of health data from in utero to even cryofreezing of organs after clinical death will be stored in the cloud for all time to come. Wearable devices will converge terabytes of individual information. A doctor visible in 3D will interact with our AVATHAR. Examine a patient will shift to examine the data. For less complex disorders, the doctor will be an algorithm, knowing millions of patients better than any actual doctor working in a small local community.

Clinical applications. The quality of life for dementia patients will be improved using VR headsets to visit virtual environments, enabling retrieval of old memories, providing positive mental stimulation. Projecting 3D veins on to the skin will enable easier drawing of blood for a robot. WHO is using smartphones and simulated situations to train Covid-19 responders. Psychiatrists use VR to treat post-traumatic stress among combat soldiers. Medical colleges use AR/VR for trainees to get a 360-degree view of ailments and replication of real-life procedures, including surgery.

Medical facility design allows visualization of people, equipment, and surgical setups for various procedures. Virtual processes facilitate optimal design. FDA is reviewing VR/AR devices through its Medical Extended Reality Program. This would be a precursor to setting regulatory requirements for future devices and uses. Brain-­machine interface wearables and implants translate neuronal information into commands, capable of control­ling external software or hardware, such as a computer or robotic arm. Haptic glove technology allows touch sensation to be experienced in the virtual world. Linking the virtual world to the real world will require many clinical trials. High-tech hardware like smart glasses, gloves, sensors, and other wearables will read vital signs.

The future. On May 29, 2021, the sixth outreach program, using XR (extended reality) technology platform, was held by Asian Thoracic Surgery Education Group. 200 thoracic surgeons from different continents accessed the virtual environment, wearing a head-mounted display (HMD). Discussions occurred in real time, while observing surgery in a virtual environment. Moving the mouse, every corner of the OR was visible. 3D headset ensured presence in the OR. Surgeons wore 3D glasses and observed high-resolution 3D images from laparoscopic cameras. It is not surprising that a Metaverse Doctors Association has already been started by neurosurgeon Dr Lee Eon.

For the very conservative healthcare industry, unequivocal evidence is required that investment in metaverse is cost-effective, appropriate, and that this additional tool will improve healthcare outcomes. Interoperability, portability, stakeholder customization, human factors (skills, resistance, distrust, cyber-attacks), legislation, and regulation need to be addressed. Digital health has products and solutions giving patients and providers the ability to view, share, exchange, create, and interact with digital content. For a health metaverse, the medical health ecosystem requires profound digital transformation in process, workflow, practice, and delivery methods.

Many of us are afraid of the future and cling desperately to the present, not realizing that we have already become the past. It is time to be future-ready. 22 years ago, when the author broached the topic of telehealth, eyebrows were raised! The story will be different for metaverse. After all, the future is always ahead of schedule!