A fast, accurate and closed-form method for pose recognition of an intramedullary nail using a tracked C-arm

Purpose The main challenge of intramedullary nail (IM-nail) fixation surgery is to achieve the X-ray shot in which the distal holes of the IM-nail appear as circles (desired view); screw insertion is then performed. Although C-arm X-ray devices are routinely used in IM-nail fixation procedures, the surgeons or radiation technologists (rad-techs) usually utilize them in a trial-and-error manner. This increases both radiation exposure and surgery time. This study addresses the problem by presenting a C-arm-based IM-nail pose recognition method.