Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study was to assess the accuracy and efficacy of a needle-tracking system in phantom and clinical studies using bipolar electrodes.
Methods
To observe the tip of the electrode, a needle-tracking system with a volume navigation system was used. In the phantom study, the electrode was inserted at various angles and the error was verified. In the clinical study, 21 nodules close to extrahepatic organs or major vessels were enrolled between May and October 2014. After puncturing with the needle-tracking system, computed tomography (CT) was performed. The distances between the electrode tip and extrahepatic organs or major vessels were measured on both B-mode ultrasound (US) and CT. By comparing these distances, the accuracy of this system was evaluated.
Results
In the phantom study, the deviation between the tip of the electrode and the virtual tip of the electrode was analyzed. The median values were within 2 mm at each puncture angle. In the clinical study, the difference between B-mode US and CT was less (mean value 1.17 ± 1.76 mm; range 0–3.5 mm).
Conclusion
The needle-tracking system is an accurate and useful system for bipolar radiofrequency ablation.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Feng X, Xu R, Du X, et al. Combination therapy with sorafenib and radiofrequency ablation for BCLC Stage 0-B1 hepatocellular carcinoma: a multicenter retrospective cohort study. Am J Gastroenterol. 2014;109:1891–9.
Stattaus J, Kuehl H, Ladd S, et al. CT-guided biopsy of small liver lesions: visibility, artifacts, and corresponding diagnostic accuracy. Cardiovasc Inter Rad. 2007;30:928–35.
Gianfelice D, Lepanto L, Perreault P, et al. Value of CT fluoroscopy for percutaneous biopsy procedures. J Vasc Interv Radiol JVIR. 2000;11:879–84.
Uehara T, Hirooka M, Ishida K, et al. Percutaneous ultrasound-guided radiofrequency ablation of hepatocellular carcinoma with artificially induced pleural effusion and ascites. J Gastroenterol. 2007;42:306–11.
Hirooka M, Kisaka Y, Uesugi K, et al. Virtual puncture line in radiofrequency ablation for hepatocellular carcinoma of the caudate lobe. AJR Am J Roentgenol. 2009;193:W149–51.
Tomonari A, Tsuji K, Yamazaki H, et al. Feasibility of the virtual needle tracking system for percutaneous radiofrequency ablation of hepatocellular carcinoma. Hepatol Res. 2013;43:1352–5.
Clasen S, Schmidt D, Boss A, et al. Multipolar radiofrequency ablation with internally cooled electrodes: experimental study in ex vivo bovine liver with mathematic modeling. Radiology. 2006;238:881–90.
Seror O, N’Kontchou G, Ibraheem M, et al. Large (≥5.0-cm) HCCs: multipolar RF ablation with three internally cooled bipolar electrodes–initial experience in 26 patients. Radiology. 2008;248:288–96.
Terraz S, Constantin C, Majno PE, et al. Image-guided multipolar radiofrequency ablation of liver tumours: initial clinical results. Eur Radiol. 2007;17:2253–61.
Jung EM, Friedrich C, Hoffstetter P, et al. Volume navigation with contrast enhanced ultrasound and image fusion for percutaneous interventions: first results. PLoS One. 2012;7:e33956.
Hirooka M, Iuchi H, Kumagi T, et al. Virtual sonographic radiofrequency ablation of hepatocellular carcinoma visualized on CT but not on conventional sonography. AJR Am J Roentgenol. 2006;186:S255–60.
Minami Y, Kudo M, Hatanaka K, et al. Radiofrequency ablation guided by contrast harmonic sonography using perfluorocarbon microbubbles (Sonazoid) for hepatic malignancies: an initial experience. Liver Int. 2010;30:759–64.
Miyamoto N, Hiramatsu K, Tsuchiya K, et al. Sonazoid-enhanced sonography for guiding radiofrequency ablation for hepatocellular carcinoma: better tumor visualization by Kupffer-phase imaging and vascular-phase imaging after reinjection. Jpn J Radiol. 2009;27:185–93.
Lü Y, Liu M, Li C, et al. MRI-guided biopsy and aspiration in the head and neck: evaluation of 77 patients. Eur Radiol. 2012;22:404–10.
Lü Y, Fritz J, Li C, et al. Magnetic resonance imaging-guided percutaneous biopsy of mediastinal masses: diagnostic performance and safety. Invest Radiol. 2013;48:452–7.
Acknowledgments
This work was supported in part by a Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (JSPS KAKENHI 15K09960 to M.H., and 15K09006 to Y.H.) from the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, as well as a Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research and Development from the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (to Y.H.).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of interest
No conflicts of interest exist.
Ethical standards
Human rights statements and informed consent: All procedures followed were in accordance with the ethical standards of the responsible committee on human experimentation (institutional and national) and with the Helsinki Declaration of 1975, as revised in 2008 (5). Informed consent was obtained from all patients included in the study.
About this article
Cite this article
Hirooka, M., Koizumi, Y., Imai, Y. et al. Assessment of a needle-tracking system for bipolar radiofrequency ablation. J Med Ultrasonics 43, 185–191 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10396-015-0679-4
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10396-015-0679-4