Hybrid pneumatic-hydraulic actuation for MRI-guided robotic stereotactic neurointervention.

Abstract

Stereotactic neurointervention is a common procedure for biopsy, injection, ablation, and implantation of electrodes for deep brain stimulation. Guided by preoperative imaging, conventional approaches are mostly performed manually, lacking operation stability and interactive feedback. The intraoperative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) guidance enables both structural and functional assessment during operation, permitting interactive adaptation to tissue deformation and avoidance of critical anatomical regions. Here, we report an MRI-guided robotic system for stereotactic neurointervention. A macro-micro hybrid pneumatic-hydraulic actuated stereotactic robot with a large range of motion and high precision is developed. This is coupled with a compact bioinspired soft actuator for target intervention. A global-focal MRI sequence is proposed for interactive navigation, closed-loop control, and precise targeting. Validation is performed with phantom, cadaveric, and in vivo animal studies, showing positional accuracies of 0.39, 0.68, and 0.14 millimeters, respectively, demonstrating superior performance compared to the current state of the art in robotic-assisted stereotactic neurointervention.