A vitrectomy probe with combined vibration dampening and attenuating. The probe may include a variety of features to lessen the vibrations felt by a surgeon during a vitrectomy procedure. These may include minimizing the degree of flow restriction through a housing that facilitates cutter reciprocation by way of air pressure. Further, utilizing softer stops at a diaphragm that drives the cutter reciprocation may be of benefit as is strategically lessening compressive forces by seals at an extension tube coupled to the diaphragm where possible. The use of a softer gripping component that is actually held by the surgeon may be of benefit in terms of vibration attenuation.

A surgical system includes a first tracker configured to be affixed to a first object, a detection device configured to determine a change in position of the first tracker, and circuitry communicable with the detection device. The circuitry is configured to compare the change in the position of the first tracker to a condition and generate a fault signal in response to a determination that the change in the position of the first tracker violates the condition.

Apparatus and methods are provided for using catheters to increase the accuracy of anatomical maps in the setting of patient movement.

A system including an instrument adapted to be manually supported and moved by a user. The instrument having a hand-held portion, a working portion movably coupled to the hand-held portion, and a plurality of actuators operatively coupled to the working portion for moving the working portion in a plurality of degrees of freedom relative to the hand-held portion. The instrument having a tracking device attached to the hand-held portion. The system including a navigation system for determining a position of the working portion relative to a target volume, and a control system in communication with the actuators to control the actuators to move the working portion relative to the hand-held portion such that the working portion autonomously follows a path defined in the control system to remove material of the target volume while the user maintains the hand-held portion in a gross position relative to the target volume.

A surgical instrument navigation system and method of use is provided that visually simulates a virtual volumetric scene of a body cavity of a patient from a point of view of a surgical instrument residing in the cavity of the patient, wherein the surgical instrument, as provided, may be a steerable surgical catheter with a biopsy device and/or a surgical catheter with a side-exiting medical instrument, among others. Additionally, systems, methods and devices are provided for forming a respiratory-gated point cloud of a patient's respiratory system and for placing a localization element in an organ of a patient.

Systems and methods for tracking movement of a catheter within airways of a lung. A deformable model of the lung represents airways of the lung as airway segments joined at bifurcations. Deformation of the lung model uses modification of the angles and/or positions of the airway segments with respect to each other. An initial model may be generated, for example, based on segmentation of a CT image. A baseline deformable registration of the initial model to a lung shape of the patient at the beginning of the procedure may be established from position measurements of the catheter along plurality of different pathways. Optionally, the baseline registration is dynamic according to respiratory phase. Relative to the baseline registration, real-time changes in lung shape may be modeled by using further measurements obtained using the catheter as it navigates to a target, preferably using position sensors distributed along the catheter body.

Apparatus and methods are described for receiving into at least one processor a set of images of blood vessels of a subject. A road map of the subject's blood vessels is generated, by automatically (a) deriving at least one image from the set of images of the blood vessels, based upon visibility of at least a portion of the blood vessels in the set of images, and (b) in the derived image, determining a location of edge lines of at least some of the portion of the blood vessels in the image. An output is generated by the processor, based on the road map. Other embodiments are also described.

A location tracking system includes a location pad collar and a processor. The location pad collar is configured to be placed around a neck of a patient and includes one or more magnetic field generators configured to generate one or more magnetic fields within a head of the patient. The processor is configured to receive, in response to the one or more generated magnetic fields, one or more position signals that are indicative of a location of a distal end of a sheath of a probe inside a blood vessel in a brain of the patient. Based on the received position signals, the processor is configured to estimate the location of the distal end of the sheath in the brain relative to a clot in the brain.

Methods, apparatuses, and systems relating to image guided interventions on dynamic tissue. One embodiment is a method that includes creating a dataset that includes images, one of the images depicting a non-tissue internal reference marker, being linked to non-tissue internal reference marker positional information, and being at least 2-dimensional. Another embodiment is a method that includes receiving a position of an instrument reference marker coupled to an instrument; transforming the position into image space using a position of a non-tissue internal reference marker implanted in a patient; and superimposing a representation of the instrument on an image in which the non-tissue internal reference marker appears. Computer readable media that include machine readable instructions for carrying out the steps of the disclosed methods. Apparatuses, such as integrated circuits, configured to carry out the steps of the disclosed methods. Systems that include devices configured to carry out steps of the disclosed methods.

A system for dynamic registration of autonomy using augmented reality can include an augmented reality system, an imaging system, a measuring system, and a computer system. The augmented reality system can be configured to display an augmented representation. The imaging system can be configured to image an anatomical feature of the patient and can generate anatomical imaging data. The measuring system can be configured to measure an anatomical movement of the patient and can generate an anatomical movement data. The computer system can be configured to receive the anatomical imaging and positional data and the anatomical movement data, generate the augmented representation based on the anatomical imaging data, associate the augmented representation with the anatomical movement data, render the augmented representation on the augmented reality system, and selectively update the augmented representation based on the anatomical movement data.