Image guided operating robot: a clinical application in stereotactic neurosurgery

Describes a system based on the combined use of medical imaging and robot positioning used in stereotactic neurosurgery. The types of interventions performed with the help of this system require a high precision (less than 1 millimeter) of positioning with respect to the patients brain with no direct visibility of the target; they are executed through a hole in the skull of 2.3 millimeters. A typical example is the placement of a stimulating electrode in a particular nucleus of the thalamus for patients suffering from Parkinson's disease. These interventions rely on the intensive use of medical imaging to define the operative strategy. The target is defined with respect to the images. A six-axis robot whose end-effector is a linear guide automatically reaches a configuration generated such that if the surgical instrument (needle, electrode, etc.) is introduced in the guide, the surgeon reaches the target using a linear displacement of the instrument. This system is operational and is in routine clinical use.<<ETX>>