Published online Aug 26, 2020. doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v8.i16.3440
Peer-review started: April 8, 2020
First decision: April 24, 2020
Revised: May 7, 2020
Accepted: July 18, 2020
Article in press: July 18, 2020
Published online: August 26, 2020
Medical robot is a promising surgical tool, but no specific one has been designed for interventional treatment of chronic pain. We developed a computed tomography-image based navigation robot using a new registration method with binocular vision. This kind of robot is appropriate for minimal invasive interventional procedures and easy to operate. The feasibility, accuracy and stability of this new robot need to be tested.
To assess quantitatively the feasibility, accuracy and stability of the binocular-stereo-vision-based navigation robot for minimally invasive interventional procedures.
A box model was designed for assessing the accuracy for targets at different distances. Nine (three sets) lead spheres were embedded in the model as puncture goals. The entry-to-target distances were set 50 mm (short-distance), 100 mm (medium-distance) and 150 mm (long-distance). Puncture procedure was repeated three times for each goal. The Euclidian error of each puncture was calculated and statistically analyzed. Three head phantoms were used to explore the clinical feasibility and stability. Three independent operators conducted foramen ovale placement on head phantoms (both sides) by freehand or under the guidance of robot (18 punctures with each method). The operation time, adjustment time and one-time success rate were recorded, and the two guidance methods were compared.
On the box model, the mean puncture errors of navigation robot were 1.7 ± 0.9 mm for the short-distance target, 2.4 ± 1.0 mm for the moderate target and 4.4 ± 1.4 mm for the long-distance target. On the head phantom, no obvious differences in operation time and adjustment time were found among the three performers (P > 0.05). The median adjustment time was significantly less under the guidance of the robot than under free hand. The one-time success rate was significantly higher with the robot (P < 0.05). There was no obvious difference in operation time between the two methods (P > 0.05).
In the laboratory environment, accuracy of binocular-stereo-vision-based navigation robot is acceptable for target at 100 mm depth or less. Compared with freehand, foramen ovale placement accuracy can be improved with robot guidance.
Core tip: We developed a computed tomography image-based navigation robot using new registration method with binocular vision. The objective of this study was to evaluate the feasibility, accuracy and stability of this new robot. Our results showed that the accuracy of this kind of navigation robot is acceptable for interventional treatment with target depth of 100 mm or less. Compared with freehand operation, the robot navigation can improve the accuracy and stability when conducting foramen ovale placement. The binocular-stereo-vision based navigation robot is a promising tool, and our research provides key validation results for its clinical application.