Design and simulation of a visual and haptic assisted biopsy (ViHAB) system

Area of Science:

• Medical Imaging
• Surgical Simulation
• Biotechnology

Background:

• Core needle biopsy is crucial for diagnosing breast and prostate cancer.
• Current image-based guidance systems for biopsy lack real-time, 3D visualization or use ionizing radiation.
• Limitations include non-real-time imaging, 2D visualization, and ionizing radiation in existing methods.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a visually guided, haptically assisted breast biopsy (ViHAB) system.
• To integrate real-time 3D ultrasound (US) imaging with haptic guidance for biopsy procedures.
• To enhance radiologist's ability to identify suspicious tissues and guide needle placement accurately.

Main Methods:

• Development of the ViHAB simulator at the Virtual Environment Laboratory.
• Utilizing real-time 3D US imaging for visualization and tracking.
• Incorporating haptic feedback and a joystick for virtual needle manipulation.

Main Results:

• The ViHAB simulator can read and display 3D US images in near real-time.
• The system tracks micro-calcifications across image sequences.
• It provides integrated haptic and visual guidance for a virtual biopsy needle.

Conclusions:

• The ViHAB system offers a promising approach for real-time, 3D image-guided biopsy.
• Haptic and visual feedback can improve the precision of needle placement during biopsies.
• This technology has the potential to enhance the accuracy and safety of minimally invasive cancer diagnosis.