Department of Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering, University College London, Gower Street, London, WC1E 6BT, United Kingdom.
Wellcome/EPSRC Centre for Surgical and Interventional Sciences, University College London, Charles Bell House, 67-73 Riding House Street, London, W1W 7EJ, United Kingdom.
Sci Rep. 2017 Jun 16;7(1):3674. doi: 10.1038/s41598-017-03886-4.
Ultrasound is well suited for guiding many minimally invasive procedures, but its use is often precluded by the poor visibility of medical devices. When devices are not visible, they can damage critical structures, with life-threatening complications. Here, we developed the first ultrasound probe that comprises both focused and unfocused transducer elements to provide both 2D B-mode ultrasound imaging and 3D ultrasonic needle tracking. A fibre-optic hydrophone was integrated into a needle to receive Golay-coded transmissions from the probe and these data were processed to obtain tracking images of the needle tip. The measured tracking accuracy in water was better than 0.4 mm in all dimensions. To demonstrate the clinical potential of this system, insertions were performed into the spine and the uterine cavity, in swine and pregnant ovine models in vivo. In both models, the SNR ranged from 13 to 38 at depths of 22 to 38 mm, at out-of-plane distances of 1 to 15 mm, and at insertion angles of 33 to 42 degrees relative to the probe surface normal. This novel ultrasound imaging/tracking probe has strong potential to improve procedural outcomes by providing 3D needle tip locations that are co-registered to ultrasound images, while maintaining compatibility with current clinical workflow.
超声非常适合引导许多微创程序，但由于医疗设备的能见度差，其使用往往受到限制。当设备不可见时，它们可能会损坏关键结构，导致危及生命的并发症。在这里，我们开发了第一个包括聚焦和非聚焦换能器元件的超声探头，以提供 2D B 模式超声成像和 3D 超声针跟踪。光纤水听器被集成到针中，以接收来自探头的 Golay 编码传输，这些数据被处理以获得针尖的跟踪图像。在水中测量的跟踪精度在所有维度上都优于 0.4 毫米。为了证明该系统的临床潜力，在猪和怀孕绵羊模型中进行了脊柱和子宫腔的插入。在这两种模型中，SNR 在深度为 22 到 38 毫米、离平面距离为 1 到 15 毫米以及相对于探头表面法线的插入角度为 33 到 42 度时，范围从 13 到 38。这种新型超声成像/跟踪探头具有很强的潜力，可以通过提供与超声图像配准的 3D 针尖位置，同时保持与当前临床工作流程的兼容性，来改善手术结果。
