Intraoperative Needle Tip Tracking with an Integrated Fibre-Optic Ultrasound Sensor.

Area of Science:

• Medical Imaging
• Surgical Technology
• Biomedical Engineering

Background:

• Ultrasound guidance is crucial for minimally-invasive procedures, but needle tip visibility is often limited.
• Inaccurate needle placement can lead to serious complications, including nerve damage and organ injury.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the in vitro and ex vivo accuracy of a novel, real-time ultrasound needle tip tracking system.
• To assess the system's suitability for guiding fetal interventions and other clinical applications.

Main Methods:

• Integration of a fiber-optic, Fabry-Pérot interferometer hydrophone into an intraoperative needle.
• Localization of the needle tip within a commercial handheld ultrasound system, displaying a superimposed cross-hair.
• Accuracy assessment through controlled needle positioning in water and ex vivo tissue phantoms.

Main Results:

• In water, the mean tracking distance was 0.7 ± 0.4 mm, with a repeatability of 0.3 ± 0.2 mm.
• In a tissue phantom, the mean tracking distance was 1.1 ± 0.7 mm.
• Tracking accuracy was not affected by needle angle.

Conclusions:

• The developed ultrasound needle tracking system demonstrates high accuracy and clinical compatibility.
• This technology represents a significant advancement for ultrasound-guided interventions, paving the way for human studies.