Journal of Image Guided Surgery 

About: Journal of Image Guided Surgery is an academic journal. The journal publishes majorly in the area(s): Magnetic resonance imaging & Stereotactic surgery. It has an ISSN identifier of 1078-7844. Over the lifetime, 45 publications have been published receiving 2548 citations.

Development of an MRI‐compatible needle insertion manipulator for stereotactic neurosurgery

Abstract: A variety of medical robots for stereotactic neurosurgery has been developed in recent years. Almost of all these robots use computed tomography (CT) to scan the brain of the patient before and during surgery. Currently, we are developing a needle insertion manipulator for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-guided neurosurgery. MRI techniques, including MRI angiography and functional MRI, are attractive for the development of interventional MRI therapies and operations. If a robot were available, these therapies would be minimally invasive, with more accurate guidance than is possible with current CT-guided systems. Actuation of a robot in an MRI environment is difficult because of the presence of strong magnetic fields. Therefore, the robot must be constructed of nonmagnetic materials. The system frame was manufactured using polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and was actuated using ultrasonic motors. Accuracy-evaluation procedures and phantom tests have been performed. The total accuracy of the system was approximately 3.0 mm. No artifacts caused by the manipulator were observed in the images.

Computer‐assisted spine surgery: A technique for accurate transpedicular screw fixation using CT data and a 3‐D optical localizer

Abstract: The computer-assisted spine surgery system presented in this paper follows the basic ideas which have been developed for computer-assisted medical interventions (CAMI) in our lab since 1985. There are three steps to insert a linear tool inside vertebral pedicles. First, the surgeon defines an optimal trajectory on pre-operative computed tomography. Second, this trajectory is reported in the operating room coordinate system using an intra-operative sensor and a registration algorithm. Third, a guiding system helps the surgeon follow the selected trajectory. In this paper, we present an implementation of this method that uses only a 3-dimensional optical localizer. Results on cadaver specimens and on the first seven patients are presented.

Automatic identification of gray matter structures from MRI to improve the segmentation of white matter lesions

Abstract: The segmentation of MRI scans of patients with white matter lesions (WML) is difficult because the MRI characteristics of WML are similar to those of gray matter. Intensity-based statistical classification techniques misclassify some WML as gray matter and some gray matter as WML. We developed a fast elastic matching algorithm that warps a reference data set containing information about the location of the gray matter into the approximate shape of the patient's brain. The region of white matter was segmented after segmenting the cortex and deep gray matter structures. The cortex was identified by using a three-dimensional, region-growing algorithm that was constrained by anatomical, intensity gradient, and tissue class parameters. White matter and WML were then segmented without interference from gray matter by using a two-class minimum-distance classifier. Analysis of double-echo spin-echo MRI scans of 16 patients with clinically determined multiple sclerosis (MS) was carried out. The segmentation of the cortex and deep gray matter structures provided anatomical context. This was found to improve the segmentation of MS lesions by allowing correct classification of the white matter region despite the overlapping tissue class distributions of gray matter and MS lesion.

Computer-Assisted Knee Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction: First Clinical Tests

Abstract: Anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction is a delicate task The procedure of choice is the patellar tendon bone autograft, but an anisometric position of this tendon often leads to failure We allows positioning of the central part of the ligament graft at the least anisometric sites The system uses a workstation and a three-dimensional optical localizer to create images that represent knee kinematics The surgeon uses these images to guide the surgery This technique has been validated on eight cadavers and 12 patients

Computer-Aided Fixation of Spinal Implants

Abstract: Medical imaging provides an important basis for modern diagnosis as well as for preoperative planning of surgical procedures. However, information gained cannot be transferred directly into the operating room. Furthermore, the safety and accuracy of the surgical intervention would be improved by interactive navigation of surgical instruments. These features are provided by the system for computer-aided fixation of spinal implants described in this paper.