title: A system for stereotactic irradiation and magnetic resonance evaluations in the rat brain.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  A stereotactic fixation and localization device developed for small animal stereotactic radiosurgery is described.
  
  
  METHODS
  Irradiated volumes of spherical shape down to 1.7 mm in diameter at the 80% isodose level are attainable. The fixation device can also be used for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and allows target localization during magnetic resonance (MR) image content measurement. The capabilities of the entire system were investigated using a phantom that permitted measurement and localization of the three-dimensional dose distribution. Localization of target isocenter coordinates in MR images was also checked with the phantom.
  
  
  RESULTS
  An overall spatial error of about 1 mm for subsequent stereotactic irradiation was obtained.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The accuracy of the fixation and localization techniques is adequate to investigate radiation-induced changes in the rat brain.
authors.affiliation: German Cancer Research Center, Department of Biophysics and Medical Radiation Physics, Heidelberg.
authors.forename: C P
authors.initials: CP
authors.lastname: Karger
authors.forename: G H
authors.initials: GH
authors.lastname: Hartmann
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Hoffmann
authors.forename: W J
authors.initials: WJ
authors.lastname: Lorenz
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001921:Brain / Q000601:surgery*; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D016634:Radiosurgery / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D011879:Radiotherapy Dosage; D051381:Rats