3D Near Infrared and Ultrasound Imaging of Peripheral Blood Vessels for Real-Time Localization and Needle Guidance

Abstract

This paper presents a portable imaging device designed to detect peripheral blood vessels for cannula insertion that are otherwise difficult to visualize beneath the skin. The device combines near infrared stereo vision, ultrasound, and real-time image analysis to map the 3D structure of subcutaneous vessels. We show that the device can identify adult forearm vessels and be used to guide manual insertions in tissue phantoms with increased first-stick accuracy compared to unassisted cannulation. We also demonstrate that the system may be coupled with a robotic manipulator to perform automated, image-guided venipuncture.

A Review on Real-Time 3D Ultrasound Imaging Technology

“…In addition, real-time 3D intravascular US imaging making use of an electromagnetic tracking sensor or an optical positioner enables the precise alignment of endovascular aortic stent grafting [87] and detection of peripheral blood vessels for cannula insertion guidance [88]. …”

Deep learning robotic guidance for autonomous vascular access

“…The first network (Fig. 2c) was trained on previously acquired NIR video data of left and right forearm vessels from nine healthy participants 59 . Inputs into the network were two-channel tensors with dimensions 384 × 288 × 2, with channels comprising rectified left and right stereo NIR images.…”

“…The second network (Fig. 2d) was pre-trained on two public US image datasets 63,64 and fine-tuned on previously acquired transverse 2D US images of peripheral upper-extremity vessels from nine subjects using two clinical US transducers (L18-10L30H-4, Telemed Ultrasound and SeeMore Near-Field 7.5/24 MHz, Interson) 59 . Inputs were two-channel tensors with dimensions 512 × 416 × 2 containing B-mode and CDIs.…”

Design and Evaluation of a Robotic Device for Automated Tail Vein Cannulations in Rodent Models

“…In this fashion, transmitted light from underneath the tail is captured by the cameras above to provide internal tissue structure imaging. Near-infrared imaging is optimal for visualizing blood vessels, specifically veins, due to reduced scatter of NIR light on the skin surface and increased hemoglobin absorption in veins [18]. Images are captured by the cameras and sent to the host processor for analysis.…”

“…Three-dimensional NIR stereo imaging is used to localize veins and precisely control needle positioning, while a holding platform is used to ensure that the tail and animal remain fixed during the procedure. As seen with the development of a venipuncture device for humans, we hypothesize that this system will yield both an increase in accuracy and a decrease in procedure time [18]. Our target accuracy requirement is a 0.3 mm tail vein diameter-the smallest diameter of a mouse tail vein.…”