Arc-to-line frame registration method for ultrasound and photoacoustic image-guided intraoperative robot-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy

Hyunwoo Song; Shuojue Yang; Zijian Wu; Hamid Moradi; Russell H Taylor; Jin U Kang; Septimiu E Salcudean; Emad M Boctor

doi:10.1007/s11548-023-02984-1

Arc-to-line frame registration method for ultrasound and photoacoustic image-guided intraoperative robot-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy

Int J Comput Assist Radiol Surg. 2024 Feb;19(2):199-208. doi: 10.1007/s11548-023-02984-1. Epub 2023 Aug 23.

Authors

Hyunwoo Song^{1

2}, Shuojue Yang², Zijian Wu², Hamid Moradi³, Russell H Taylor^{1

2}, Jin U Kang^{4

2}, Septimiu E Salcudean³, Emad M Boctor^{5

6}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Computer Science, Whiting School of Engineering, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, 21218, USA.
² Laboratory for Computational Sensing and Robotics, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, 21218, USA.
³ Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z4, Canada.
⁴ Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Whiting School of Engineering, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, 21218, USA.
⁵ Department of Computer Science, Whiting School of Engineering, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, 21218, USA. eboctor@jhu.edu.
⁶ Laboratory for Computational Sensing and Robotics, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, 21218, USA. eboctor@jhu.edu.

PMID: 37610603
DOI: 10.1007/s11548-023-02984-1

Abstract

Purpose: To achieve effective robot-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy, the integration of transrectal ultrasound (TRUS) imaging system which is the most widely used imaging modality in prostate imaging is essential. However, manual manipulation of the ultrasound transducer during the procedure will significantly interfere with the surgery. Therefore, we propose an image co-registration algorithm based on a photoacoustic marker (PM) method, where the ultrasound/photoacoustic (US/PA) images can be registered to the endoscopic camera images to ultimately enable the TRUS transducer to automatically track the surgical instrument.

Methods: An optimization-based algorithm is proposed to co-register the images from the two different imaging modalities. The principle of light propagation and an uncertainty in PM detection were assumed in this algorithm to improve the stability and accuracy of the algorithm. The algorithm is validated using the previously developed US/PA image-guided system with a da Vinci surgical robot.

Results: The target-registration-error (TRE) is measured to evaluate the proposed algorithm. In both simulation and experimental demonstration, the proposed algorithm achieved a sub-centimeter accuracy which is acceptable in practical clinics (i.e., 1.15 ± 0.29 mm from the experimental evaluation). The result is also comparable with our previous approach (i.e., 1.05 ± 0.37 mm), and the proposed method can be implemented with a normal white light stereo camera and does not require highly accurate localization of the PM.

Conclusion: The proposed frame registration algorithm enabled a simple yet efficient integration of commercial US/PA imaging system into laparoscopic surgical setting by leveraging the characteristic properties of acoustic wave propagation and laser excitation, contributing to automated US/PA image-guided surgical intervention applications.

Keywords: Image-guided surgical intervention; Multi-modality image registration; Photoacoustic imaging; Robot-assisted surgery; Ultrasound imaging.

MeSH terms

Algorithms
Humans
Imaging, Three-Dimensional / methods
Laparoscopy*
Male
Prostatectomy / methods
Prostatic Neoplasms* / surgery
Robotics*
Surgery, Computer-Assisted* / methods
Ultrasonography / methods

Abstract

MeSH terms

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