Abstract
This paper proposes an interactive method of model clipping for computer-assisted surgical planning. The model is separated by a data filter that is defined by the implicit function of the clipping path. Being interactive to surgeons, the clipping path that is composed of the plane widgets can be manually repositioned along the desirable presurgical path, which means that surgeons can produce any accurate shape of the clipped model. The implicit function is acquired through a recursive algorithm based on the Boolean combinations (including Boolean union and Boolean intersection) of a series of plane widgets’ implicit functions. The algorithm is evaluated as highly efficient because the best time performance of the algorithm is linear, which applies to most of the cases in the computer-assisted surgical planning. Based on the above stated algorithm, a user-friendly module named SmartModelClip is developed on the basis of Slicer platform and VTK. A number of arbitrary clipping paths have been tested. Experimental results of presurgical planning for three types of Le Fort fractures and for tumor removal demonstrate the high reliability and efficiency of our recursive algorithm and robustness of the module.
Highlights
Computer-assisted surgical planning, a technique integrating the computer technology in presurgical planning and navigation, has been used to improve the safety and accuracy of the surgery [1], [2]
The results show the correct analysis of the time performance of the recursive algorithm and the presurgical planning method is highly efficient
A recursive algorithm is developed for clipping models based on the Boolean combination of the implicit functions of the series of the connected plane widgets
Summary
Computer-assisted surgical planning, a technique integrating the computer technology in presurgical planning and navigation, has been used to improve the safety and accuracy of the surgery [1], [2]. Orthopaedic surgical planning is a typical example. It provides surgeons with templates of orthopaedic prostheses [3]. With the representing of the patients’ image, surgeons can reconfigure geometrical constructs to match the anatomical features shown in the image and the most suitable parameters of the templates of orthopaedic prosthesis for the patients are selected [4]. Surgeons perform manipulations such as rotation, zooming, measurement and clipping of the models in the surgical planning softwares. Among these manipulations, model clipping is of great importance because surgeons need to find a appropriate and convenient clipping path to separate those fractured bones before taking the real operation
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