Foldable medical simulation system

Abstract

Embodiments of the invention are directed to a foldable system for a simulated image-guided medical procedure. The system includes a foldable base having at least two portions connected by a hinge, each to support one of the guide tubes two or more guide tubes to guide operational tools and two or more tracking units to detect tracking information of the operational tools. The tracking units are configured to provide tracking information to a processor be used in an image guided computerized medical simulation.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS[0001]This patent application is a continuation application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13 / 898,483, filed May 21, 2013, which is incorporated in its entirety by reference herein.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0002]Many medical procedures such as, for example, angioplasty procedures can pose challenges even to the most experienced physicians. When performing angioplasty procedures such as angioplasty balloon procedure to eliminate blockages in a blood vessel, a physician may insert and manipulate several operational tools, for example, guidewires, catheters and sheaths into a patient's arterial network, until reaching the blockage point. During the navigation in the patient's arterial network, the physician may inject a contrasting fluid into the arterial network to allow a visual inspection of the location of the tools in the arterial network on a display (e.g., a fluoroscope display under continuous X-ray radiation). The operational tool(...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

The invention is a portable and foldable medical simulation system for training physicians in image-guided procedures such as angioplasty and stent placement. The system includes a base and several removable working units that can be easily assembled and disassembled for training and practice. The system uses a combination of virtual and real-life training tools to provide a more immersive and realistic training experience for physicians. The system is designed to be long, heavy, and less portable than current simulation systems, making it difficult for physicians to transport the system to different medical institutions or use it for training sessions at different departments within the same medical institution. The invention aims to simplify the assembly and maintenance of the system, improve its calibration, and make it more portable for training purposes.

Problems solved by technology

Many medical procedures such as, for example, angioplasty procedures can pose challenges even to the most experienced physicians.

Medical procedures, such as an angioplasty balloon procedure, that involve delicate and coordinated hand movements, spatially unrelated to the view on a video monitor of the remotely controlled operational tools may pose a number of challenges.

Depth perception is lacking on a flat video display and therefore it is not an easy task to learn to control the tools through the spatially arbitrary linkage.

A mistake in this difficult environment can be dangerous.

Therefore, a high level of skill is required, and a realistic training of these specialists is a complex task.

The length of the operational tools used in endovascular procedures requires that the simulator shall be long, making the current simulation systems long, heavy and less portable, for example, for presentations or training sessions at different medical institutions or even at different department within the same medical institution.

Additionally, the maintenance of such systems is complicated.

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