Guidewire Tracking System with Virtual Ray Overlay for Sinus Surgery
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Solution Overview
Problem
In nasal sinus laser surgery, accurately targeting laser radiation to ablate tissue while avoiding healthy tissue is challenging due to the need for precise alignment and risk of trauma to non-target areas.
Innovation Solution
A system that uses a CT scan registered with a tracking system to overlay a virtual ray on the scan, terminating at specific gray levels indicative of tissue density, allowing for precise targeting of ablation sites by directing laser radiation based on the tracked coordinates of a sensor-probe combination.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If laser radiation is directed to ablate tissue in nasal sinus surgery, then tissue ablation is achieved, but trauma to healthy tissue may occur due to imprecise targeting
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by registering the CT scan with the tracking system before surgery, and by overlaying the virtual ray on the CT scan to predict the laser path before actual irradiation. This allows the physician to verify correct targeting and adjust the guidewire position to avoid healthy tissue before the harmful laser ablation occurs.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a virtual ray as an intermediary visual element that represents the predicted laser path. This virtual ray overlays on the CT scan and terminates at pixels where gray level values cross a predefined threshold, providing a visual mediator between the physical guidewire position and the expected laser ablation zone, allowing verification before actual tissue interaction.
2Measurement precision
If a tracking system with CT scan registration is used to visualize laser path, then targeting accuracy is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The tracking system serves multiple functions: it tracks the location and orientation of the sensor in the patient, registers the CT scan with the patient's anatomy, and enables overlay of the virtual ray. This multi-functional approach consolidates what could be separate complex systems into a unified tracking platform.
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates a virtual copy of the laser path by overlaying the virtual ray on the registered CT scan. This digital copy allows visualization and verification of the laser trajectory without physical intervention, simplifying the pre-surgical planning and intra-surgical guidance process.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables accurate and safe targeting of laser radiation to desired ablation sites within nasal sinuses, minimizing trauma to healthy tissue by visualizing the path of the laser beam through the CT scan's gray level distribution, ensuring correct alignment before irradiation.
Implementation Method 1
a magnetic tracking system
Implementation Method 2
Laser surgery uses a laser beam to ablate or vaporize tissue
Data Source
AI summary
A method, including registering a computerized tomography (CT) scan of a patient with a tracking system configured to track a location and an orientation of a sensor in the patient, and displaying the CT scan on a screen. The method further includes tracking coordinates of a probe having the sensor inside the patient using the tracking system. Based on the tracked coordinates, an icon representative of the location of the sensor is overlaid on the CT scan on the screen. The method also includes overlaying on the CT scan a ray, issuing from the icon in a direction corresponding to the orientation of the sensor, and traversing the screen to a termination point chosen responsively to a gray level distribution of the CT scan.