Computer Assisted ENT Surgery Using Augmented Reality: Preliminary Results on the CAESAR Project

Abstract

Abstract. The 'Computer Assisted ENT Surgery using Augmented Reality' (CAESAR) project aims to improve ENT surgical procedures through augmentation of the real operative scene during surgery: a virtual scene, which shows structures that are normally hidden to the eye of the surgeon, is superimposed onto the real scene. The main distinction of this project as opposed to previous work in the field is to create a hierarchical and stepwise implemented system which allows operations such as calibration, tracking and registration to be assessed on an individual basis. This allows us to compare different alternatives for each operation and eventually apply the best solution without interfering with the performance of other parts of the system. In this paper, we present a framework for the alignment of the objects/subject in the real and virtual operating environment before the onset of surgery, and test its performance on a phantom skull. The operations involved are thus based on a static system and include calibration of the stereo microscope and registration of the virtual patient (as reconstructed from CT data) with the real patient. The final alignment of all objects in the real and virtual operating scene is assessed by cumulating maximum errors of each individual step.

Using a passive coordinate measurement arm for motion tracking of a rigid endoscope for augmented-reality image-guided surgery

“…The patient's captured images were acquired pre-operatively and displayed in real time. Various AR-based systems for surgical interventions using a stereoscopic surgical microscope have been further developed since the mid-1990s (8)(9)(10).…”

The design process of an autostereoscopic viewing interface for computer-assisted microsurgery

“…Displaying the trajectory of the surgical tool in 2.5/3D was a useful aid to the surgeon even if the accuracy was not much better than a few millimetres. Today, CAS has become popular in a variety of surgical fields including cranio-and maxillo facial surgery, ENT (ear, nose and throat) surgery, orthopaedic surgery, cardiac surgery, laparoscopy, interventional radiology and several other surgical disciplines [2].…”

“…The research group from the Institute of Laryngology and Otology at UCL, London, has been conducting active research in the field of AR in ENT surgery [3]. The aim of its latest project.…”