Browse Technologies

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Vanderbilt researchers have developed a novel system for allowing surgical instruments to navigate around tighter corners and access difficult-to-reach areas in the body. This system uses pre-curved elastic elements added on to the existing instrument. Current surgical instruments are manufactured in a straight-line configuration, which means they must bend in order to reach around obstructions in surgery. By adding pre-curved sections, some of the bending is already accomplished, allowing the instrument to bend around tighter corners.

Vanderbilt researchers have developed heterogeneous catalysis and catalyst for the NMR Signal Amplification by Reversible Exchange (SABRE) hyperpolarization process. Coupled with the researchers' development of a method to perform SABRE in aqueous solutions, this discovery could allow fully biocompatible SABRE hyperpolarization processes in water with catalyst recycling. This would allow the production of pure aqueous contrast agents requiring only parahydrogen as a consumable.

Vanderbilt researchers have designed a forward scanning miniature intraoperative Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) probe that can be used for diagnostic purposes and real-time monitoring of surgery within small spaces, such as endoscopic surgery, intraocular surgery, and other microsurgery.

Vanderbilt researchers have developed a system that corrects for compressional effects in ultrasound data during soft tissue imaging. The system uses tracking and digitization information to detect the pose of the ultrasound probe during imaging, and then couples this information with a biomechanical model of the tissue to correct compressional effects during intraoperative imaging.