Intraoperative blood vessel detection and quantification: a Monte Carlo study.

With better surgical outcomes, quicker recovery times, decreased postoperative pain, and reduced scarring at the surgical site, the application of minimally invasive surgery (MIS) has gained a lot of prominence in the last 30 years. This change in surgical practice has taken away the ability of a surgeon to palpate for the presence of a blood vessel as would occur in an open procedure. They instead must rely on a laparoscopic video camera feed that unfortunately cannot detect the presence of a blood vessel hidden beneath tissue.

Blood vessel detection, localization and estimation using a smart laparoscopic grasper: a Monte Carlo study.

For centuries, surgeons have relied on their sense of touch to identify vital structures such as blood vessels in traditional open surgery. Over the past two decades, surgeons have shifted to minimally invasive surgical (MIS) approaches, including laparoscopic surgery, which include benefits such as less scarring, less risk for infection, and quicker recovery times. In fact, some surgeries such as cholecystectomies have seen more than an 80% adoption of this technique because of those benefits.

Multi-modal magnetic resonance elastography for noninvasive assessment of ovarian tissue rigidity in vivo.

For centuries, physicians have relied on touch to palpate tissue and detect abnormalities throughout the body. While this time-tested method has provided a simple diagnostic examination for large, superficial abnormalities, it does not permit quantifiable measurements of stiffness in deeper, small organs. Advances in noninvasive imaging to measure tissue rigidity represent important extensions of manual palpation techniques.