Estimation of intra-operative brain shift using a tracked laser range scanner

Area of Science:

• Neurosurgery
• Medical Imaging
• Robotics

Background:

• Image-guided neurosurgery systems (IGNS) rely on pre-operative imaging.
• Intra-operative brain shift significantly limits the accuracy and usefulness of IGNS.
• Accurate intra-operative measurements are crucial for developing effective solutions to brain shift.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present an intra-operative surface shift measurement technique for neurosurgery.
• To compare the efficacy of two displacement derivation methods using a 3D laser range scanner.

Main Methods:

• Development of an intra-operative surface shift measurement technique using a tracked 3D laser range scanner.
• Acquisition of co-registered 3D range data and 2D images.
• Comparison of two displacement calculation methods: 2D image registration versus direct 3D range data registration.

Main Results:

• The 3D laser range scanner successfully acquired co-registered 3D and 2D data.
• Analysis of five datasets demonstrated the performance of both 2D and 3D registration methods.
• The method based on 2D image registration proved to be preferable for deriving displacements.

Conclusions:

• The presented 3D laser scanner technique provides valuable intra-operative measurements.
• 2D image registration is a more effective approach for calculating brain surface shifts compared to direct 3D registration.
• This finding can improve the accuracy and reliability of image-guided neurosurgery systems.