A Mobile Computed Tomographic Scanner with Intraoperative and Intensive Care Unit Applications

Abstract

The ability to perform intraoperative computed tomography (CT) may add to the safety and efficacy of some neurosurgical procedures (5, 7, 9). It would be preferable for intraoperative CT to be available on demand to a surgeon in the middle of an operation without occupying the computed tomographic scanner for the length of the operation. We report the use of a mobile computed tomographic scanner that can be wheeled into an operating room (OR) on demand during an operation and used to perform intraoperative CT. The gantry of the scanner can be programmed to translate (in contrast with other scanners for which the patient table translates), allowing for multislice computed tomographic images of a patient positioned on an immobile surface. Adaptations to the head of the operating table are described here, as is the technique for patient positioning with a radiolucent head frame.