BACKGROUND

The use of a combination of surgical decompression of the spinal cord and stabilization of the spine with subsequent conformal radiation therapy of tumor remnants in the treatment of patients with metastatic vertebral tumors makes it relevant to calculate and visualize the volume of a partially removed metastatic vertebral tumor without intraoperative X-ray computed tomography (CT).

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of the study was to evaluate the algorithm for calculating the volume of the cytoreductively removed part of the body of the vertebra affected by the tumor using optical navigation.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

On 6 human cadavers, a typical posterior approach and navigated resection of the vertebral body from a posterolateral transpedicular approach at several levels were simulated. A total of 15 patients underwent palliative surgical treatment for metastatic tumors of the spine, including decompressive and stabilizing intervention using a navigation system. During the anatomical experiment, the volume of the cavity after removal of a part of the vertebral body was calculated using a navigation system. Then, the volumes of the resected part of the vertebra, calculated during the anatomical experiment or during the surgical intervention, were compared with the results calculated later using the CT neuroimaging data.

RESULTS

When analyzing the data from the laboratory and clinical phases of the experiment, it was found that the calculated indicators of the volume of the removed part of the vertebral bodies at different levels, calculated on the basis of intraoperative measurements and according to the results of control CT, do not differ statistically significantly.

CONCLUSION

The navigation system under the conditions of experimental interventions in biological models and in the surgical treatment of patients with metastatic spinal involvement showed high accuracy of software algorithms in calculating the volume of cytoreduction of tumor tissue.