Development of a multi-modal interactive system for Endoscopic Endonasal Approach surgery simulation

Abstract

Endoscopic Endonasal Approach (EEA) surgery, as a minimally invasive technique, is now the preferred treatment for most pituitary and skull base tumors. This procedure uses the nostrils as natural corridors to remove relevant lesions, which requires a high level hands-on skills and rich clinical experience. With the aid of virtual reality technology, virtual surgical environments can provide a new solution for surgical training, planning, and rehearsal. In this paper, a multi-modal interactive system for EEA surgery simulation is presented. Due to the complex surgical procedures, the bone drilling task is identified as the core part for neurosurgeons to train and build their skills. A multi-modal interactive system providing visual, haptic and audible feedback is developed for bone drilling task. Besides, a customized 3-DOF haptic interface is utilized to control a virtual drill in the virtual environment rendered with patient-specific preoperative image data set. The preliminary experiment shows that this multi-modal interactive system can provide an immersive experience for neurosurgeons to perform the bone drilling task in a cost effective way.