Extended Reality and Its Applications in Cardiovascular Medicine

Abstract

Medical imaging is central to the diagnosis of cardiovascular disease. Cardiac computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and echocardiography remain the most widely used modalities in clinical practice. These techniques provide two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) visualizations that meet most clinical needs for diagnosis, surgical planning, and patient follow-up. However, given the complexity of cardiovascular anatomy and anomaly, conventional 2D and 3D reconstructions are limited in that they present only flat images rather than realistic 3D representations of the spatial relationship between anatomical structures and disease. This limitation has driven growing interest in innovative 3D technologies to aid in diagnosis and patient management, with 3D printing and extended reality (XR) emerging as particularly promising tools.