Stereo fluoroscopy-assisted percutaneous needle puncture of the vertebral body

The purpose was to determine whether real-time three-dimensional imaging by stereo fluoroscope could alleviate the nuisance of moving the fluoroscope C-arm during needle biopsy of the spine. Fifteen lumbar vertebrae of four beagle dog cadavers were used in a simulation. We used a newly devised portable-type stereo fluoroscope, which alternatively exposes the X-ray from left and right X-ray tubes so that a surgeon can decode left and right images displayed alternately on a monitor by using polarizing glasses. A 2-mm-diameter Kirschner wire was inserted into the vertebral bodies by a posterolateral approach without moving the C-arm. An axial view of the roentgenogram of each vertebra found all 15 wires to be appropriately inserted. This would appear to be a time-saving feature.