A body-mounted device for MRI-guided spinal therapy

Background Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a neurodegenerative disease with no cure and limited treatment options. Recent studies have shown that delivering cellular therapeutics to the ventral horn of the spinal cord can effectively halt neurodegeneration associated with ALS in small animal models. Methods We developed a robotic system that assists with MRI-guided percutaneous injections to the spinal cord. The needle positioning robot consists of two linear axes with motorised translational sleds for two-degree-of-freedom (2-DOF) needle translation and a radial template for 2-DOF discrete rotation. Results The robot's targeting capability, evaluated using phantom models and swine cadavers, showed mean targeting errors of 0.48 and 2.84 mm, respectively. The duration of the targeting procedure is approximately 60 min, with an extra 10 min for each additional injection. Conclusions The presented robot does not affect imaging quality during MRI-guided procedures, and it enables a simplified workflow for MRI-guided spinal therapy.

Automated summary

A robotic system was developed to assist in MRI-guided percutaneous injections to the spinal cord, with mean targeting errors of 0.48 and 2.84 mm in phantom models and swine cadavers, respectively. The targeting procedure duration is approximately 60 min, with an extra 10 min for each additional injection, enabling a simplified workflow for MRI-guided spinal therapy without affecting imaging quality.