The intra-neuroendoscopic technique (INET): a modified minimally invasive technique for evacuation of brain parenchyma hematomas

Optimal Concentric Tube Robot Design for Safe Intracerebral Hemorrhage Removal

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the geometrical design and path planning of Concentric tube robots (CTR) for intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) evacuation, with a focus on minimizing the risk of damaging white matter tracts and cerebral arteries.

Methods

To achieve our objective, we propose a parametrization method describing a general class of CTR geometric designs. We present mathematical models that describe the CTR design constraints and provide the calculation of a path risk value. We then use a genetic algorithm to determine the optimal tube geometry for targeting within the brain.

Results

Our results show that a multi-tube CTR design can significantly reduce the risk of damaging critical brain structures compared to the conventional straight tube design. However, there is no significant relationship between the path risk value and the number and shape of the additional inner curved tubes.

Conclusion

Considering the challenges of CTR hardware design, fabrication, and control, we conclude that the most practical geometry for a CTR path in ICH treatment is a straight outer tube followed by a planar curved inner tube. These findings have important implications for the development of safe and effective CTRs for ICH evacuation by enabling dexterous manipulation to minimize damage to critical brain structures.

Neuroendoscopic Surgery Versus Stereotactic Aspiration in the Treatment of Supratentorial Intracerebral Hemorrhage: A Meta-Analysis

BACKGROUND

Debate persists over the relative merits of neuroendoscopic surgery (NS) compared to stereotactic aspiration (SA) for treating supratentorial intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). Consequently, we undertook this meta-analysis to assess the efficacy and safety of NS versus SA.

METHODS

We searched for the all-relevant studies systematically from English databases including PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Library. Three independent researchers identified and selected these literatures that met the inclusion criteria. Then we evaluated the quality of these studies according to the Cochrane Collaboration's risk of bias tool and the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale. RevMan 5.4 statistical software was used to conduct this meta-analysis.

RESULTS

Sixteen studies, including 2722 supratentorial ICH patients, were included in our meta-analysis. The pooled results showed that NS could effectively improve the functional prognosis (P = 0.002), reduce the postoperative mortality (P < 0.00001), and increase the hematoma evacuation rate (P < 0.00001). In addition, SA had more advantages in shortening operation time (P < 0.00001) and reducing intraoperative blood loss (P < 0.0001). However, there was no obvious statistical difference in intensive care unit stays (P = 0.23) between NS and SA. Besides, no sufficient evidence could support a significant difference in hospital stays. In the aspect of complications, NS was discovered to have a positive effect on preventing rebleeding (P = 0.005) and intracranial infection (P = 0.003). However, no significant differences between the 2 groups in digestive tract ulcer (P = 0.34), epilepsy (P = 0.99), and pneumonia (P = 0.58) were discovered. In the subgroup analysis, factors including publication time, Glasgow Coma Scale score, age, and follow-up, all significantly influenced the good functional outcome and mortality. Meanwhile, NS behaved more advantageous in improving functional prognosis for patients with hematoma located in the basal ganglia.

CONCLUSIONS

NS may hold more advantages over SA in the treatment of supratentorial ICH. However, SA is also an effective and suitable alternative for elderly patients, especially those with multiple comorbidities intolerant to extended surgical procedures. Further high-quality studies are warranted to substantiate our findings in the future.

Towards MR-Guided Robotic Intracerebral Hemorrhage Evacuation: Aiming Device Design and ex vivo Ovine Head Trial

Stereotactic neurosurgery is a well-established surgical technique for navigation and guidance during treatment of intracranial pathologies. Intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) is an example of various neurosurgical conditions that can benefit from stereotactic neurosurgery. As a part of our ongoing work toward real-time MR-guided ICH evacuation, we aim to address an unmet clinical need for a skull-mounted frameless stereotactic aiming device that can be used with minimally invasive robotic systems for MR-guided interventions. In this paper, we present NICE-Aiming, a Neurosurgical, Interventional, Configurable device for Effective-Aiming in MR-guided robotic neurosurgical interventions. A kinematic model was developed and the system was used with a concentric tube robot (CTR) for ICH evacuation in (i) a skull phantom and (ii) in the first ever reported ex vivo CTR ICH evacuation using an ex vivo ovine head. The NICE-Aiming prototype provided a tip accuracy of 1.41±0.35 mm in free-space. In the MR-guided gel phantom experiment, the targeting accuracy was 2.07±0.42 mm and the residual hematoma volume was 12.87 mL (24.32% of the original volume). In the MR-guided ex vivo ovine head experiment, the targeting accuracy was 2.48±0.48 mm and the residual hematoma volume was 1.42 mL (25.08% of the original volume).

Minimally invasive puncture combined with a high frequency of urokinase therapy improves outcomes in patients with HICH

Minimally invasive puncture combined with urokinase is widely used in the treatment of hypertensive intracerebral hemorrhage (HICH). However, the appropriate frequency of urokinase following minimally invasive puncture in patients is still unclear. In total, 55 patients were enrolled in this study. According to the frequency of urokinase (10.0 ​× ​104 units) administration, 30 patients received urokinase at Q4h, while the other 25 patients received urokinase at Q8h. In the univariate analysis, preoperative GCS (p ​= ​0.0002), postoperative GCS (p ​= ​0.0007), the volume of residual hematoma (p ​= ​0.0179), and the frequency of urokinase (p ​= ​0.0110) were associated with unfavorable outcomes in patients with HICH in the basal ganglia. The multivariate analysis revealed that the frequency of urokinase was independently associated with unfavorable outcomes in patients with HICH in the basal ganglia (p ​= ​0.038, 1.109-35.380). The drainage time was significantly shorter in the Q4h group (14.17 ​± ​0.86 ​h) than in the Q8h group (27.36 ​± ​1.39 ​h) (p ​< ​0.0001). The GOS (4.37 ​± ​0.18), BI (75.52 ​± ​2.39), and mRS (1.67 ​± ​0.24) in the Q4h group were significantly ameliorated compared to those in the Q8h group (GOS 3.56 ​± ​0.18, BI 64.13 ​± ​2.22, and mRS 2.64 ​± ​0.28, respectively) (p ​= ​0.0004, p ​= ​0.0002, and p ​= ​0.0018) at 3 months of follow-up. Thus, minimally invasive puncture combined with urokinase is safe and efficient. Increasing the frequency of urokinase administration can produce faster and better postoperative recovery for patients with HICH in the basal ganglia.

A Continuum Robotic Cannula with Tip Following Capability and Distal Dexterity for Intracerebral Hemorrhage Evacuation

OBJECTIVE

This paper aims to investigate a new continuum robot design and its motion implementation methods appropriate for a minimally invasive intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) evacuation.

METHODS

We propose a continuum robotic cannula, consisting of a precurved body and a 2-degree-of-freedom (DoF) flexible tip, monolithically fabricated. Kinematics model with cable elongation model, and a dedicated design optimization and motion planning algorithm were developed to enable the follow-the-leader (FTL) motion of the cannula. A task-dependent Jacobian-based closed loop control was also designed to track the cannula motion during the insertion and its independent tip motion.

RESULTS

Comprehensive experiments were conducted to verify the kinematic model and submillimeter motion coupling between the cannula precurved body and its flexible tip. The cannula was also capable of achieving FTL motion within around 2.5 mm shape deviation and control performance within submillimeter errors. It was finally demonstrated to be capable of the nonlinear insertion and tip manipulation in the brain phantom.

CONCLUSION

The new cannula design, together with the proposed algorithms, provides the unique ability to access ICH in a nonlinear trajectory and dexterous tip motion.

SIGNIFICANCE

These motion capabilities of the robot in such a slender form factor will lead to more complete ICH evacuation and reduced trauma to the healthy brain tissues.

Neuroinflammation Mediated by NLRP3 Inflammasome After Intracerebral Hemorrhage and Potential Therapeutic Targets

Intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) is the most fatal subtype of stroke; there is still a lack of effective treatment. Microglia are a major component of the innate immune system, and they respond to acute brain injury by activating and forming classic M1-like (pro-inflammatory) or alternative M2-like (anti-inflammatory) phenotype. The existence of the polarization indicates that the role of microglia in disease's progression and recovery after ICH is still unclear, perhaps involving microglial secretion of anti-inflammatory or pro-inflammatory cytokines and chemokines. The NOD-like receptor family, pyrin domain-containing 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome is considered to be the main participant in neuroinflammation. Recent evidence has shown that NLRP3 inflammasome can be activated after ICH, resulting in inflammatory cascade reactions and aggravating brain injury. Furthermore, previous studies have reported that NLRP3 inflammasome is mainly present in microglia, so we speculate that its activation may be strongly associated with microglial polarization. Many scholars have investigated the role of brain injury caused by NLRP3 inflammasome after ICH, but the precise operating mechanisms remain uncertain. This review summarized the activation mechanism of NLRP3 inflammasome after ICH and the possible mechanism of NLRP3 inflammasome promoting neuroinflammation and aggravating nerve injury and discussed the relevant potential therapeutic targets.

A Clinical Study of the Intra-Neuroendoscopic Technique for the Treatment of Subacute-Chronic and Chronic Septal Subdural Hematoma

Objective: The surgical technique, safety, efficacy, and clinical application value of the intra-neuroendoscopic technique (INET) for the treatment of subacute-chronic and chronic septal subdural hematoma was investigated based on the structure and pathological features of the hematoma wall, and the critical factors of hematoma growth and recurrence were determined, in order to provide reference for clinical drug treatment.

Methods: This was non-randomized concurrent control study. A total of 94 patients who met the inclusion criteria were recruited between May 2015 and February 2019 and were divided into the INET treatment group (INET group, 45 cases) and the burr hole drainage (BHD) treatment group (control group, 49 cases). The hematoma fluid components and the morphological structure and pathological characteristics of the hematoma wall were analyzed, and the surgical duration, subdural drainage tube (SDT) placement duration, intracranial infection rate, Bender grade at the 1 month post-operative follow-up and hematoma recurrence rate within the 6 months of post-operative follow-up were compared between the two groups. A multiple logistic regression model was established to analyze the risk factors associated with recurrence within 6 months.

Results: Intraoperative endoscopy showed that the adhesion bands that formed early in the hematoma cavity were strip-like and that those that formed late were lock-column-like. The hematoma cavity was divided into different-sized chambers with by these strips/columns. Pathological sections of cyst wall reveled angiogenesis inside the cyst and mucus-like changes, rupture and hemorrhage in the vascular wall. Obvious inflammatory cell infiltration and fibrous connective tissue hyperplasia were observed in the cyst wall. The osmotic pressure of the hematoma fluid was not significantly different from that of the peripheral venous blood [(296.7 ± 10.3) mOsm/kg vs. (291.5 ± 12.4) mOsm/kg, p = 0.68]. However, the D-dimer contents which reflect the severity of fibrinolysis in the hematoma and the proinflammatory cytokine interleukin 6 (IL-6) were significantly higher in the hematoma fluid than in the peripheral venous blood. The surgery duration for the INET group was significantly longer than that for the control group [(60.4 ± 10.6) min vs. (44.1 ± 9.8) min, p = 0.00], but both the hematoma recurrence rate within 6 months of post-operative follow-up (4.4 vs. 24.5%, p = 0.00) and the SDT placement duration [(2.1 ± 0.6) d vs. (3.9 ± 0.7) d, p = 0.00] for the INET group were both lower than those for the control group. The intracranial infection rate did not differ significantly between the two groups (4.4 vs. 10.2%, p = 0.50). The overall effective rate of the Bender grade at 1 month of follow-up did not differ significantly between the two groups (95.6 vs. 87.8%, p = 0.32), but the proportion of patients who recovered to Bender grade 0 with no symptoms was significantly higher in the INET group than in the control group (86.7 vs. 67.3%, p = 0.03). Multiple logistic regression analysis showed that INET surgery [odds ratio (OR) 3.71, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.31–9.62, p = 0.02], age of 65 years or younger (OR 1.51, 95% CI 1.05–2.87, p = 0.03) and unilateral subdural hematoma (OR 1.76, 95% CI 1.05–3.41, p = 0.02) were independent factors that reduced the post-operative recurrence rate.

Conclusion: The INET surgical plan based on the structure and pathological features of the subacute-chronic and chronic subdural hematoma wall can reduce the recurrence rate and improve the clinical prognosis.

Trial registration:ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT02515903. Registered 5 August, 2015.