VR helps parents visualize a child's operation.

His parents had to make a difficult decision - either choose the risk of surgery or let nature take over with the resulting physical and psychological repercussions. But thanks to innovative new technology, Amanda and Judd Mihnowick were able to see changes in virtual reality first.

That, says the doctor behind it, is more information than most parents get. Archie's condition - sagittal synostosis - means that as his brain grows, his skull cannot grow sideways to accommodate it. Instead, it expands back and forth, distorting the shape of the head.

"It was so amazing," said her mother, Amanda. "There are a lot of meetings and a lot of free time [from work]." So Amanda and Judd didn't hesitate when Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital offered them the opportunity to be the first to use a revolutionary artificial intelligence (AI) platform that predicts the outcome of life-changing virtual reality surgeries.

At their first consultation, the immersion allowed them to view the reconstruction of Archie's head from all angles, which was made on a CT scan. Moreover, in green, what does his head look like after being reshaped.

VR environment showing Archie's current head shape (grey) and predicted changes after surgery (green). The algorithms needed to create these new images were made possible using data from 60 operations over the past seven years.

"We are happy, and of course, there are always concerns about what he will do," Amanda said after the consultation. "While there's a lot to be done, it's great to know that this is what we have to hope for and explain, and we're not going to wait and wonder what's going on."

But technology allows couples to see and understand what difference the procedure will make; it is also encouraged to suggest possible surgery changes.