The human body is no less demanding an environment than that of space or energy. IFOS has developed a platform for instrumenting needles and catheters for use in image assisted biopsies and surgery. The integration of very small fiber Bragg gratings within the body of the needle provides real time shape, tip position, tip force and other measurements that are superimposed on the platform console. The materials are MRI compatible so that the needles can be used whether the imaging and guidance platform is ultrasound, CT or MRI based. The measurement of tip position, force and needle or catheter shape enhances the ability of the surgeon to minimize tissue damage and target very small lesions with precision and efficiency. This results in better patient outcomes and clinical economies.
In a parallel development, involving a team of world class researchers and engineers at IFOS and Stanford University Mechanical Engineering Department and the Stanford School of Medicine and Hospital, an MRI compatible biopsy needle has been developed that can be actively steered using light. A laser source delivers light along a fiber, which in turn provides energy that causes a memory alloy to bend in a controlled fashion, thus allowing the needle a degree of freedom for optical steering.
IFOS sells sensorized medical devices for biopsy and surgery under the MEDIFOS™ trade name. Specific product offerings relevant to medical solutions include:
- IFOS I*Sense™ 48K for shape, position and tip force sensing in surgery tools, catheters and biopsy needles sensorized with fiber Bragg gratings (FBG) for real time addition to the image in image assisted surgery under MRI, CT or ultrasound
- IFOS I*Sense™ 48K-MS-HC for simultaneous measurement on a larger number of FBGs across several fibers for temperature and strain measurements leading to shape, position and tip force sensing in surgery tools
- Biopsy and surgery implements sensorized with FBGs for the measurement of parameters such as static and dynamic strain, force, pressure, temperature and flow
- IFOS light steerable needles and catheters
- IFOS Fyberspace™ polished fiber cladding management platform for bio sensing
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