Development of remote surgical navigation and biopsy needle guidance system using Open-MRI and high-speed network

摘要

This study describes a remote surgical guidance and navigation system developed for surgery using "Open-MRI" and high-speed network. We connected Osaka University Hospital and Kawasaki Hospital which has deployed Open-MRI with high speed IP over ATM network. The distance between two hospitals is approximately 50 km. Two video cameras were installed with an angle of 40 degrees on an open-MRI gantry to obtain intraoperative images. Two pairs of CODEC (AD/DA converter) were equipped on the network to transfer both images and sound in real time. A pointer system to indicate a region on an image was also developed. MRI images obtained by Open-MRI were transferred to a 3D workstation in Osaka University Hospital. The system was designed for a senior surgeon in Osaka University to advise regarding accurate needle direction for a remote patient by checking the reconstructed 3D images and schemata shown by the navigation software. The schemata were also superimposed on intraoperative images from two cameras, and the superimposed images were sent back to Kawasaki Hospital. This system allowed a surgeon in the operation room at Kawasaki Hospital to accurately view navigation schema under supervision by a senior surgeon in a remote university hospital with superimposion of intraoperative images. The pointer system allowed both doctors to share intraoperative images during a virtual-real surgical operation. A successful biopsy case using this newly developed system illustrates the effectiveness of this system.