A novel patient-to-image surface registration technique for ent-and neuro-navigation systems: Proper point set in patient space

Patient-to-medical image registration is a crucial factor that affects the accuracy of image-guided ENT-and neurosurgery systems. In this study, a novel registration protocol that extracts the point cloud in the patient space using the contact approach was proposed. To extract the optimal point cloud in patient space, we propose a multi-step registration protocol consisting of augmenta-tion of the point cloud and creation of an optimal point cloud in patient space that satisfies the minimum distance from the point cloud in the medical image space. A hemisphere mathematical model and plastic facial phantom were used to validate the proposed registration protocol. An optical and electromagnetic tracking system, of the type that is commonly used in clinical practice, was used to acquire the point cloud in the patient space and evaluate the accuracy of the proposed registration protocol. The SRE and TRE of the proposed protocol were improved by about 30% and 50%, respectively, compared to those of a conventional registration protocol. In addition, TRE was reduced to about 28% and 21% in the optical and electromagnetic methods, respectively, thus show-ing improved accuracy. The new algorithm proposed in this study is expected to be applied to sur-gical navigation systems in the near future, which could increase the success rate of otolaryngolog-ical and neurological surgery.