A P R I L 2 0 1 6 O U T P A T I E N TS U R G E R Y. N E T 6 3
can integrate with the current system. You need to be able to send fluoroscopic
images over to your navigation system so you can use the navigation device dur-
ing surgery.
• Isocentricity. You also want to make sure that the central beam always remains
in the isocenter, which eliminates the need for repositioning and enables both
time and dose savings (see "Understanding the Principle of Isocentricity").
Rather than moving the C-arm up and down and side to side when you rotate
the C-arm, the C-arm will fixate on the anatomy you're imaging, automatically
putting it in the center of the field.
Like any new technology, 3D C-arms are far from perfect. The intraoperative
image quality is clearly not of the quality you'd get from a post-op CT scan. But
20 years ago, CT scans weren't what they are today. Things don't happen
overnight.
OSM
Dr. Gary (joshgary14@gmail.com) is an orthopedic trau-
ma surgeon and an assistant professor of orthopaedic sur-
gery at the University of Texas Medical School at Houston.
