Integration and evaluation of a needle-positioning robot with volumetric microcomputed tomography image guidance for small animal stereotactic interventions

Purpose: Preclinical research protocols often require insertion of needles to specific targets within small animal brains. To target biologically relevant locations in rodent brains more effectively, a robotic device has been developed that is capable of positioning a needle along oblique trajectori...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Medical physics (Lancaster) 2010-04, Vol.37 (4), p.1647-1659
Main Authors: Waspe, Adam C., McErlain, David D., Pitelka, Vasek, Holdsworth, David W., Lacefield, James C., Fenster, Aaron
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
ACCURACY
Algorithms
Animals
AUDITORY ORGANS
Barium
BARIUM SULFATES
BRAIN
CAT SCANNING
Computed tomography
computerised tomography
CONTRAST MEDIA
Equipment Design
ERRORS
EVALUATION
GELATIN
image guidance
IMAGE PROCESSING
image registration
Image scanners
Magnetic resonance imaging
Male
manipulators
medical image processing
Medical image reconstruction
Medical imaging
medical robotics
Models, Animal
Models, Statistical
Needles
NOSE
PHANTOMS
Phantoms, Imaging
position control
POSITIONING
RADIOLOGY AND NUCLEAR MEDICINE
Radiosurgery - methods
RATS
Rats, Sprague-Dawley
Registration
Robotics
ROBOTS
SKULL
small animal imaging
stereotactic intervention
surgery
Surgery, Computer-Assisted - instrumentation
Surgery, Computer-Assisted - methods
TUNGSTEN
Ultrasonography
X RADIATION
x-ray micro-CT
X-Ray Microtomography - methods
X‐ray imaging
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Summary:Purpose: Preclinical research protocols often require insertion of needles to specific targets within small animal brains. To target biologically relevant locations in rodent brains more effectively, a robotic device has been developed that is capable of positioning a needle along oblique trajectories through a single burr hole in the skull under volumetric microcomputed tomography (micro-CT) guidance. Methods: An x-ray compatible stereotactic frame secures the head throughout the procedure using a bite bar, nose clamp, and ear bars. CT-to-robot registration enables structures identified in the image to be mapped to physical coordinates in the brain. Registration is accomplished by injecting a barium sulfate contrast agent as the robot withdraws the needle from predefined points in a phantom. Registration accuracy is affected by the robot-positioning error and is assessed by measuring the surface registration error for the fiducial and target needle tracks (FRE and TRE). This system was demonstratedin situ by injecting 200   μ m tungsten beads into rat brains along oblique trajectories through a single burr hole on the top of the skull under micro-CT image guidance. Postintervention micro-CT images of each skull were registered with preintervention high-field magnetic resonance images of the brain to infer the anatomical locations of the beads. Results: Registration using four fiducial needle tracks and one target track produced a FRE and a TRE of 96 and 210   μ m , respectively. Evaluation with tissue-mimicking gelatin phantoms showed that locations could be targeted with a mean error of 154 ± 113   μ m . Conclusions: The integration of a robotic needle-positioning device with volumetric micro-CT image guidance should increase the accuracy and reduce the invasiveness of stereotactic needle interventions in small animals.
ISSN:0094-2405
2473-4209
DOI:10.1118/1.3312520