Three-Dimensional Reconstruction and Navigation Systems in Endoscopic Ultrasound Procedures: A Comprehensive Review

TL;DR

This paper reviews how 3D ultrasound reconstruction improves visualization and navigation during endoscopic procedures, though its full potential is still being explored.

Contribution

The paper provides a comprehensive review of 3D reconstruction's role in endoscopic ultrasound and highlights its potential for augmented reality applications.

Findings

3D ultrasound reconstruction allows for enhanced visualization of anatomical structures.

AR algorithms can overlay reconstructed images with real-time data to improve clinician performance.

Despite early promise, 3D reconstruction for procedural guidance is still in the research phase.

Abstract

Three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction of ultrasound (US) images represents a novel advancement that has been extensively explored over the past three decades. This technique enables endoscopists to perform more detailed and enhanced visualizations of anatomical structures, which is not feasible using traditional ultrasound methods. The reconstructed images also facilitate navigation during endoscopy-guided procedures, such as fine-needle aspiration. Furthermore, augmented reality (AR) algorithms can overlay the reconstructed images with real-time anatomical images, thereby enhancing clinician performance during these procedures. Current evidence suggests that 3D ultrasound reconstruction has already been widely implemented in various clinical imaging studies. However, its application for generating procedural guidance and augmented reality overlays remains in the early research stages and has not yet achieved widespread adoption. Existing pre-clinical evidence suggests that 3D reconstruction has significant potential to enhance clinician performance in various ultrasound-guided procedures.