Skylab’s mission is to support, structure and develop a surgical training program for players in the regional healthcare ecosystem, open to France and the rest of the world..
To achieve this goal, Skylab aims to transform surgical training through cutting-edge technological solutions. In collaboration with medical experts, specialized startups, and technology providers such as “caresyntax,” Skylab is transforming the way surgeons are trained through a combination of artificial intelligence, 3D imaging, and realistic modeling of anatomical structures.
Here is an overview of the innovative projects currently underway.
Deliberate Practice: Optimizing the Video Annotation Platform
Since mid-2023, the Skylab teams and their partners have been focusing on optimizing a video annotation platform dedicated to surgical images.
Currently capable of manually cutting and tagging videos, Skylab is seeking to automate these processes to improve training efficiency. The service provider “caresyntax” plays a key role in analyzing the initial images captured during training sessions, creating a database that feeds two artificial intelligence modules.
Within the next 5 to 6 years, these modules will enable:
- Automatically trim and label video sequences.
- Recognize and distinguish correct surgical procedures from errors.
- Identify the precursors of these errors, such as poor positioning, to prevent their occurrence in real time.
Once validated, these improvements will be rolled out to other teaching centers and hospitals, enhancing the effectiveness of surgical training programs.
The goal of deliberate practice: to shorten learning curves, identify errors, and prevent them from recurring
Improving the interactivity of the educational platform
Skylab is also working to improve its educational platform to offer a more interactive and personalized learning experience for each user.
With the addition of new features, each trainee surgeon will have a personalized workspace where they can:
- Follow live training sessions.
- Watch videos of your own work.
- Access a library of errors, invaluable for avoiding future complications.
This personalized approach aims to optimize the learning experience, allowing surgeons to benefit from guidance tailored to their progress.
3D Modeling of Anatomical Structures
Skylab is partnering with several startups, including Addidream, to create 3D models of anatomical structures, incorporating soft tissue onto printed pathological bones.
These models will accurately reproduce the elasticity and deformability of anatomical structures, allowing surgeons to practice under conditions that closely resemble reality. The challenge is to make the bone-tissue junctions as realistic as possible while ensuring their strength and flexibility.
These innovations will enable surgeons to be trained with models that mimic real surgical conditions, making training more efficient and realistic, and sparing the use of anatomical parts as much as possible.
Creation of intra-articular fracture models
Finally, Skylab aims to create complex intra-articular fractures on cadaveric bone.
After a detailed analysis of the biomechanics of fractures, the Skylab teams will replicate various types of fractures using a specialized machine currently under development and soon to be patented. This project will enable the creation of realistic scenarios to train surgeons in the treatment of the most complex and challenging fractures.
Through innovative projects and strategic partnerships, Skylab is positioning itself as a leader in surgical training in the Loire Valley region and, more broadly, throughout France.
By combining artificial intelligence, multi-material 3D printing, and an interactive educational platform, Skylab is transforming teaching methods and improving the quality of care provided by future surgeons. In this way, the company is helping to shape the future of medicine by promoting increasingly precise and immersive training.