Dear AuntMinnie Member,
The idea of robotic-guided interventional devices snaking their way through patients without human interaction may have sounded far-fetched just a few years ago, but a new report finds that automated device tracking can produce better results compared with conventional imaging-based guidance.
In an article for our Advanced Visualization Digital Community from this week's Computer Assisted Radiology and Surgery (CARS) conference in Berlin, staff writer Eric Barnes describes how a custom-built prototype electromagnetic needle-tracking system was tested for soft-tissue ablation and biopsy procedures.
The researchers compared the accuracy of the system to two interventional radiologists who aimed needles under conventional CT/ultrasound guidance. They found that the automated system did a better job of getting needles to the desired location than the interventional radiologists did.
Find out why, and learn about some of the reasons why an automated system can be superior to human guidance, by clicking here. Also revisit the community later this week, at av.auntminnie.com, for additional coverage from the CARS meeting.
