Thermal mapping of a cryoablation volume, for image-guided cryosurgery
First Claim
1. A system for estimating size and shape and position of a cryoablation volume during cryosurgery, comprising:
- (a) a data-receiving module operable to receive data from at least one data source selected from a group consisting of a thermal sensor, a first imaging modality operable to show position of a cryoprobe within a body of a patient, a second imaging modality operable to show position of a cryoablation target within a body of a patient, a third imaging modality operable to show position of a border of an iceball during a cryoablation procedure, and a user interface operable to receive and record diagnostic information from a user, which diagnostic information serves to specify a position of a cryoablation target within a body of a patient; and
(b) a calculation module operable to calculate a position of a cryoablation volume based on data-received by said data receiving module.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
The present invention relates to systems and methods for rendering visible to a cryosurgeon an estimated border of a cryoablation volume, thereby facilitating accurately delimited cryoablation of pathological tissues. More particularly, the present invention relates to systems and methods for reading temperature and location information from images provided by imaging modalities and optionally from thermal sensors, inferring from that information the three-dimensional shape and position of a volume of tissue considered reliably cryoablated, and presenting this shape and position information to a cryosurgeon by integrating a visual model of that information with one or more images derived from standard imaging modalities, and displaying for a cryosurgeon that integrated image.
-
Citations
53 Claims
-
1. A system for estimating size and shape and position of a cryoablation volume during cryosurgery, comprising:
-
(a) a data-receiving module operable to receive data from at least one data source selected from a group consisting of a thermal sensor, a first imaging modality operable to show position of a cryoprobe within a body of a patient, a second imaging modality operable to show position of a cryoablation target within a body of a patient, a third imaging modality operable to show position of a border of an iceball during a cryoablation procedure, and a user interface operable to receive and record diagnostic information from a user, which diagnostic information serves to specify a position of a cryoablation target within a body of a patient; and
(b) a calculation module operable to calculate a position of a cryoablation volume based on data-received by said data receiving module. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
-
-
23. A method for facilitating accurate cryoablation of a cryoablation target, comprising:
-
(a) receiving data from at least one data source selected from a group consisting of a thermal sensor, a first imaging modality operable to report position of a cryoprobe within a body of a patient, a second imaging modality operable to report a position of a cryoablation target within a body of a patient, a third imaging modality operable to show position of a border of an iceball during a cryoablation procedure, and a user interface operable to receive and record diagnostic information from a user, which diagnostic information serves to specify a position of a cryoablation target within a body of a patient;
(b) calculating position of a cryoablation volume based on said received data; and
(c) displaying said calculated position of said cryoablation volume in a display which integrate said calculated position with at least one image created by an image source selected from a group consisting of said first imaging modality, said second imaging modality, said third imaging modality, and said user interface, thereby enabling a surgeon to visualize said cryoablation volume in context, thereby facilitating accurate cryoablation of a cryoablation target. - View Dependent Claims (24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38)
-
-
39. An integrated image displaying a cryoablation site in a body of a patient, said integrated image comprising a common virtual space wherein are displayed:
-
(a) a first component image derived from source selected from a group consisting of a first imaging modality operable to report position of a cryoprobe within said body of said patient, a second imaging modality operable to report a position of a cryoablation target within said body of said patient, a third imaging modality operable to report position of a border of an iceball formed within said body during a cryoablation procedure, and a user interface operable to receive and record diagnostic information from a user, which diagnostic information serves to specify a position of a cryoablation target within said body of said patient; and
(b) a representation of a calculated position of a cryoablation volume. - View Dependent Claims (40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50)
-
-
51. A method for facilitating cryosurgery by providing to a surgeon feedback showing effective boundaries of a cryoablation procedure, comprising:
-
(a) acquiring tissue temperature and cryoprobe placement information from at least one source selected from a group consisting of MRI-derived tissue temperature information, an MRI image, an x-ray image, a CT image, an ultrasound image, a thermal sensor internal to a cryoprobe, a thermal sensor contiguous to and external to a cryoprobe, and a thermal sensor distanced from all cryoprobes and inserted in body tissues;
(b) inferring from said information a three-dimensional shape and position of a cryoablation volume; and
(c) displaying to the surgeon an integrated image showing, in a common virtual space;
(i) a first image derived form an imaging modality; and
(ii) a visualization of said inferred three-dimensional shape and position of said cryoablation volume, thereby facilitating cryosurgery by providing to the surgeon real-time feedback showing effective boundaries of a cryoablation procedure.
-
-
52. A method for guiding guided cryosurgery by calculating an estimated border of a cryoablation volume within the body of a patient, comprising:
-
(a) recording a position of a cryoprobe within tissues of said body prior to creating an iceball surrounding said probe;
(b) cooling said probe to form an iceball surrounding said probe, and recording positions of a three-dimensional borders of said iceball;
(c) selecting a distance ratio usable to determine status of subunits of tissue within said iceball;
(d) digitally subdividing tissue within said iceball into subunits; and
(e) determining for each subunit whether it is within an ablation volume by calculating a first distance of said each subunit from a nearest cooling portion of said cryoprobe and a second distance of said each subunit from a nearest border of said iceball, and determining that said subunit is within said ablation volume if said first distance divided by a sum of said first and second distances is less than said selected distance ratio, and determining that said subunit is outside said ablation volume if said first distance divided by a sum of said first and second distances is greater than said selected distance ratio. - View Dependent Claims (53)
-
Specification