LEBANON, N.H., Sept. 4 (UPI) -- U.S. scientists say they've discovered merging multiple computerized tomography images can aid probe positioning during radiofrequency ablation.
The researchers at the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, N.H., said radiofrequency ablation is used to destroy biological tissue for medical treatments of various lesions.
"During radiofrequency ablation the probe often needs to be repositioned in order to effectively treat an entire lesion," said Dr. John Gemery, author of the study, but it often is difficult to determine the areas that have already been treated when moving the probe. "Looking at summated images of several CT scans allows one to quickly check where the ablation probe has been," he said.
He said probe repositioning has most commonly been used on patients who have lesions within their liver or kidneys; however, it also has been used on lesions found in the lungs and bones.
The study appears in the American Journal of Roentgenology.
