The StealthStation® Treatment Guidance System provides greater accuracy,
a smaller surgical incision, a shorter procedure time, advanced
procedure planning and a shortened patient stay, creating better
patient treatment and care. The system is used in over 500 medical
centers throughout the world.
The entire image-guided surgery process can easily be correlated
or compared to location and directional tracking systems used for
cars and ships today. The image-guided surgery system camera performs
much like the satellite that detects signals from vehicles that
are quipped with special tracking devices. As the vehicle moves
the satellite calculates position, transfers the information to
the vehicle computer, which in turn shows the direction the vehicle
is moving and when programmed will give specific directions as to
how to proceed.
A CT or MR scan is essential to an image-guided surgery procedure.
Special markers or "fiducials" may be placed on your head prior
to a cranial scan. This scan will be loaded into a computer and
your surgeon can build a three-dimensional (3D) model of your head
or spine to be viewed on a computer monitor. Viewing the model and
scan information, surgeons can plan, in advance, their surgical
path and identify the surrounding anatomy. At the start of your
surgical procedure, the image-guided surgery system will be moved
into the operating room. Your scan will be displayed on the computer
screen and the surgeon will conduct what is referred to as a "registration"
process. Registration is simply matching your physical anatomy to
the computer scan information. As the registration process begins,
the surgeon will touch the center of the "fiducials" or markers
that were placed on your head or by touching specific anatomical
points on the spine or cranium with an image-guided instrument.
The camera for the image-guided surgery system will see the light
emitting diodes on the instrument and on the arc and will transfer
a signal to the computer to "register" the specific location being
touched. By matching the scan to the real anatomy, the surgeon can
now track instrumentation as it proceeds into the operative field
as well as view its relative position and trajectory.
Yes. Several companies manufacture image guided surgery systems.
The systems are differentiated by software and the applications
or procedures they can assist in performing.
Image-guided surgery systems are not robotic in design. The surgeon
still holds and guides the instruments. It is possible that robotics
will be integrated with image-guided surgery systems in the future
but all systems are still directly dependent upon the surgeon, performing
your procedure. The image-guided surgery system provides a tool
that enhances the surgeons ability to perform certain procedures.
Patients may be interested in the use of image-guided surgery for
multiple reasons. Image-guided surgery systems can increase accuracy
levels in both identifying and removing tumors or lesions and in
the placement of implants for spinal surgery. Image-guided surgery
systems can also enable surgeons to more accurately identify surgical
entry points and targets and reduce the size of incision or entry
point necessary to perform an operation. These benefits often lead
to shorter hospital stays and faster recovery. In certain cases,
tumor biopsies can be performed with an image guided surgery system
with far greater accuracy and with significantly less trauma to
the patient.
There are a few special requirements for patients undergoing a procedure
with an image-guided surgery system. In preparation for surgery,
a special MR or CT scan will be required in order to obtain the
images necessary for the procedure. This scan may require slightly
more time than a typical MR or CT scan. In addition, it is possible
that your surgeon will request that special "fiducials" or markers
be placed on your head prior to the scan. These markers are very
important because they will ultimately provide the method for the
surgeon to ensure that the image guided surgery system performs,
as it should. "Fiducials" or markers look like very tiny donuts
and are coated with a special compound to ensure that they will
show up on your scan. These markers will need to remain on your
scalp up until the start of surgery and you may be required to wear
them overnight depending upon when your image-guided surgery scan
is performed. If they fall off during the night, they should be
left off so as not to mislead the surgeon. "Fiducials" or markers
are not utilized in spine surgery. Following the scan and use of
the fiducials in neurosurgical procedures, there will not be any
additional
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Treatment Guidance Systems