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Updated: Jun 28, 2026
A Teleoperated Robotic System-Assisted Percutaneous Transiliac-Transsacral Screw Fixation Technique
Published on: January 6, 2023
What technical barriers exist for real-time fluoroscopic and video image overlay in robotic surgery?
J N Afthinos1, M J Latif, F Y Bhora
1Department of Surgery, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital Center, New York, NY 10019, USA.
Background:
A hypothetical advantage of the da Vinci console is its ability to integrate multiple visual data sources. Current platforms for augmented reality surgery fuse pre-operative radiographic studies but are limited with their ability to update with intra-operative imaging. The aim of our study was to evaluate the feasibility of real-time radiographic image overlay with current technology.
Methods:
S-video composite output from a fluoroscopic C-arm was superimposed onto the video output of the da Vinci device. Image superimposition disparity measurements were evaluated in a bench model. The feasibility of robotic dissection assisted by real-time cholangiogram and intravenous pyelogram was evaluated.
Results:
Image alignment resulted in a radiographic blind spot and image disparity with severely limited application in an in vivo model.
Conclusions:
External collisions of the robotic device and visual disparity in multiple planes negate the current implementation of fluoroscopic overlay and will require more elegant methods of computer-assisted registration.
