Abstract #4418

An Optical and Electromagnetic Hybrid Tracking System for MR Image Guided Interventional Procedures

Shigehiro Morikawa¹, Hasnine Akter Haque², Shigeyuki Naka³, Koichiro Murakami³, Yoshimasa Kurumi³, Tohru Tani³, Toshiro Inubushi¹

¹Biomedical MR Science Center, Shiga University of Medical Science, Ohtsu, Shiga, Japan; ²GE Yokogawa Medical System, Hino, Tokyo, Japan; ³Department of Surgery, Shiga University of Medical Science, Ohtsu, Shiga, Japan

In MR guided interventional procedures, an optical or electromagnetic tracking system has been used for image plane control. The optical tracking system precisely works in the strong magnetic fields, but line of sight must be maintained. An electromagnetic tracking system, which utilizes gradient pulses during data collection, can be used in any directions and even in covered area, but it requires continuous MR image acquisitions and its accuracy depends on the location. To take advantages of two sensor systems complementarily, we have developed a hybrid tracking system of them and enabled seamless navigation in MR guided interventional procedures.