title: ROBO-SIM: a simulator for minimally invasive neurosurgery using an active manipulator.
abstract: This application report describes the software system ROBO-SIM, which is a planning and simulation tool for minimally invasive neurosurgery. Using actual patient's datasets, ROBO-SIM includes all planning steps necessary. These are; defining the trepanation point for entry into the skull and the target point within the depth of the brain, checking the surgical track, performing virtual trepanations (virtual craniotomy), and defining sanctioned volumes for use with an intra-operative active manipulator. With the additional simulation part, neurosurgeons are able to simulate whole surgical interventions directly on the patient's anatomy using the same instruments as for the real operation. First tests with ROBO-SIM are performed on actual patient's datasets with ventricular tumours.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Applied Sciences in Medicine, Jakob-Haringer Str. 3, 5020 Salzburg, Austria.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Radetzky
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rudolph
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Starkie
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Davies
authors.forename: L M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Auer
mesh_terms: D003198:Computer Simulation; D003399:Craniotomy; D006801:Humans; D021621:Imaging, Three-Dimensional; D019060:Minimally Invasive Surgical Procedures; D009493:Neurosurgery; D012371:Robotics; D012984:Software; D013523:Surgical Equipment; D014207:Trephining