Filled plastic needle aids minimally invasive surgery

摘要

Researchers at Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, Germany, have developed a puncture needle made of carbon fibre reinforced plastic, which can be used to aid doctors during minimally invasive surgery and is visible to imaging devices. For treatments such as for a slipped spinal disc, it is sometimes necessary for doctors to puncture the spinal disc. This involves injecting medicine into the injured area with a thin needle. In order for the doctor to monitor the operation and position instruments correctly, an image of the area is needed, which is often done with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).