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Updated: May 11, 2026
A Spine Robotic-Assisted Navigation System for Pedicle Screw Placement
Published on: May 11, 2020
Comparison of optical and electromagnetic tracking for navigated lateral skull base surgery
Florian Kral1, Elisabeth J Puschban, Herbert Riechelmann
1Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Medical University Innsbruck, Austria. florian.kral@i-med.ac.at
Background:
Navigation with optical tracking sometimes makes it difficult to establish a line-of-sight in cluttered operating theatres. On the other hand, the accuracy of electromagnetic tracking is influenced by ferromagnetic surgical equipment. We compared electromagnetic with optical tracking under controlled conditions for the lateral skull base.
Methods:
Six anatomical specimens were dissected to measure the target registration error (TRE) in and around the petrous bone in a wet laboratory to simulate an intraoperative setting. Specimens were registered with passive optical and electromagnetic tracking.
Results:
Overall accuracy was better using optical tracking than electromagnetic tracking (0.22 mm; 0.07-0.48 vs 0.99 mm; 0.56-1.27 mm; median, lower and upper quartiles, respectively; p < 0.001).
Conclusion:
The accuracy of optical tracking was near the resolution of the camera system, whereas the accuracy of electromagnetic tracking was lower. Only optical tracking allows for an application accuracy of considerably less than 1 mm in high-resolution datasets.
