Ziehm Imaging and BrainLAB Improve Trauma and Spine Surgery With X-ray Based
Navigation
NUREMBERG, Germany, October 26 /PRNewswire/ -- Ziehm Imaging and BrainLAB
have extended their cooperation to assist surgeons in the intra-operative
guidance of pedicle screw and hardware placement during surgical trauma and
spinal instrumentation procedures. Ziehm's "NaviPort" interface now allows
high-resolution 3D images from the Ziehm Vision2 FD Vario 3D mobile C-arm to
be used for surgical navigation driven by BrainLAB technology. Ziehm's
Vision2 FD Vario 3D provides distortion-free, fully-digital flat-panel
technology which reproduces images in more than 16,000 shades of gray. This
technology can assist surgeons by providing an improved overview of the
finest anatomical structures in three dimensions, for example, when inserting
screws and implants. Professor Josten and the Clinic and Outpatients'
Department for Trauma, Reconstructive and Plastic Surgery at Leipzig
University Clinic were the first in Germany to use this new technology. More
installations are now underway in the United States. The Vision2 FD Vario 3D,
in combination with BrainLAB technology, will be shown at CNS (October 26-28
in New Orleans) and NASS (November 11-13 in San Francisco).
New study shows: 3D images can facilitate more precise pedicle screw
placement
3D imaging is a crucial aid to surgeons operating on the spinal column.
Studies prove that pedicle screws are positioned erroneously in 40 percent of
all operations that do not employ X-ray monitoring. A study by the Department
for Trauma and Reconstructive Surgery at Rostock University Clinic shows
that, "using image intensifiers for 3-D imaging makes it possible...to
correctly assess screw position and offers the advantage of immediate
correction of the screws in case of malpositioning." The study further
states, "In the future, with good 3-D scan imaging quality, a postoperative
CT scan to assess screw position will not be necessary."
High-resolution images for optimum orientation in the OR
Three-dimensional X-ray images from the Ziehm Vision2 FD Vario 3D offer
surgeons an intra-operative 3D view of the patient's anatomy in the current
surgical position and are therefore particularly suitable for complicated
procedures in which millimeter-level precision is essential. The C-arm's
fully-digital flat-panel technology provides distortion-free images in more
than 16,000 shades of gray-four times more than C-arms with conventional
image intensifiers. This can enable doctors to make more precise diagnoses.
At the Clinic and Outpatients' Department for Trauma, Reconstructive and
Plastic Surgery at Leipzig University Clinic, Professor Christoph Josten has
gained clinical experience with Ziehm Vision2 FD Vario 3D. "3D imaging during
operations provides us with a precise overview, allowing us to position
pedicle screws more accurately", explains Professor Josten. "This applies
particularly for the problematic cervical spine and the thoracic spine that
are hard to spot with conventional X-rays. The 3D function especially helps
us to avoid injuring any sensitive structures such as the spinal cord.
Therefore, it increases the safety of the surgery and can replace
radiological follow-up scans. As a result, our patients are only exposed to
low doses of X-rays and do not have to accept high radiation in
post-operative control scans. Our clinic benefits from more efficient
procedures and from the possibility of minimally invasive surgeries that help
reduce the need for pain treatment, rehab phases and eventually the
stationary stays."
X-ray based navigation with BrainLAB technology
Surgical navigation can also work more precisely in combination with
optimized 3D X-ray images. Ziehm Imaging Inc.'s exclusive Vision2 FD Vario 3D
imaging can be used with surgical navigation from BrainLAB, providing
intra-operative 3D datasets with advantages such as distortion-free images,
high resolution, and expanded dynamic range.
The new Ziehm NaviPort interface and the latest Fluoro 3D navigation
software from BrainLAB allow 3D datasets taken during the operation to be
used immediately for further interventions with the navigation system,
without additional steps required for registration. This unique link between
the two technologies saves valuable time in the operating room. BrainLAB
Fluoro 3D surgical navigation software automatically and uniquely matches the
C-arm dataset taken during surgery with the anatomical structures of the
patient within seconds. With the aid of BrainLAB Fluoro 3D software, the
surgeon can follow the patient's anatomy and the movements of the surgical
instruments on the monitor in real-time during the operation. This provides
surgeons with an improved overview of a minimally invasive procedure where
they can, for example, plan for and position screws even more precisely than
before.
Flexibility during surgery
In addition, the flat-panel detector is also unsusceptible to magnetic
fields and can be used in any operational environment, even in the vicinity
of an MR scanner. The narrow profile of the flat-panel detector allows for
more free space between the generator and detector. This makes it easier for
technologists to position the C-arm comfortably around the patient and
surgical table. Optimal fluoroscopic views are thus possible from more
angles-a crucial advantage, in particular, for operations on the spinal
column.
"Ziehm Imaging has almost 40 years of experience in developing high-tech
C-arms", explains Martin Herzmann, Director of Global Marketing at Ziehm
Imaging. "We cooperate closely with more than 100 clinics in which we have
installed our systems in order to continue development of X-ray based imaging
with flat-panel technology. As a technology leader, we are expanding the
range of clinical applications of our systems for the benefit of patients and
for the benefit of the customers of BrainLAB and Ziehm Imaging."
About flat-panel technology
Ziehm Imaging specializes in the development of mobile C-arms. The
technology leader introduced the first C-arm with digital flat-panel
technology into the market in 2005. The introduction of digital flat-panel
detectors in mobile fluoroscopy marks a quantum leap in the technological
development of mobile X-ray imaging. C-arms with flat-panel detectors can
display images with more than 16,000 shades of grey. These high-end machines
therefore improve soft tissue imaging along with visualization of bony
anatomy and are suitable for a variety of clinical applications: from
interventional radiology and cardiology to neurosurgery and vascular surgery.
Apart from fully-digital, distortion-free imaging, the flat-panel improves
access to the patient due to the larger opening of the C-arm. The flat-panel
detector is insensitive to magnetic fields which makes it possible to work
close to MRI sites or places where strong magnetic fields are present.
About Ziehm Imaging
Ziehm imaging specializes in the development, manufacturing and worldwide
marketing of mobile X-ray-based imaging solutions. The company has been
market leader in Germany for more than seven years as well as in many other
European countries for two years. Today, Ziehm Imaging is a global systems
provider, employing over 250 people worldwide. Extensive in-house development
know-how is reflected in the Ziehm Imaging C-arms' high medical imaging
performance, intelligent generator technology, significant dose savings and
seamless digital network integration. Building on competence and creativity,
as well as continuous dialog and close cooperation with renowned
universities, research centers and hospitals, Ziehm Imaging has developed
groundbreaking technologies that have made the company a global trendsetter
in intelligent interventional imaging. Ziehm Imaging products are known for
their outstanding versatility and their easy handling for a wide variety of
medical applications. In addition, they offer seamless integration into
existing IT environments for digital image data acquisition, image evaluation
and image management. Please see http://www.ziehm.com for more information.
Contact:
Ziehm Imaging Inc.
Ryan.hales@ziehm.com
Tel: +1-951-781-2020 ext. 161
SOURCE Ziehm Imaging
Contact: Ziehm Imaging Inc., Ryan.hales@ziehm.com, Tel: +1-951-781-2020 ext.
161
