Determining stiffness information of a medical instrument

A method for imaging support during a minimally invasive interventional procedure using a medical instrument in a vascular system of a patient, in which a support image showing the medical instrument in the vascular system of an intervention region is determined, the method comprising:

• determining stiffness information of the instrument;
• estimating position information describing a course of the medical instrument in a dimension along a projection direction of a projection image using the stiffness information and the course;
• determining vessel deformation information at least for vessels through which the medical instrument extends from the position information, the vessel deformation information describing deformation of vessels due to the stiffness of the instrument;
• creating an anatomical image of the intervention region showing the deformed vessels using the vessel deformation information;
• and
• determining the support image by overlaying the anatomical image and the projection image or an instrument image derived from the projection image.

A system for determining stiffness information of a medical instrument used during an interventional procedure in a vascular system of a patient, the system comprising:

• an X-ray device configured to record a three-dimensional volume image of the vascular system at least in an intervention region, the X-ray device further configured to record a two-dimensional projection image of the medical instrument using an x-ray device, wherein the x-ray device, the projection image, or the x-ray device and projection image are registered to the three-dimensional volume image;
• and
• a control device configured to derive from the three-dimensional volume image, three-dimensional vessel course information, the three-dimensional vessel course information comprising centerlines of at least vessels used by the medical instrument during the interventional procedure, surface information of at least the vessels used by the medical instrument during the interventional procedure, volume information of at least the vessels used by the medical instrument during the interventional procedure, a position of ostia along at least a part of the vessels, or any combination thereof,
• wherein the control device is further configured to determine the stiffness information of the medical instrument, the determination of the stiffness information of the medical instrument comprision evaluation of the projection image using segmentation information determined by segmentation of the instrument in the projection image, the vessel course information, or the projection image and the vessel course information.

In a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a program including instructions executable by a computer to determine stiffness information of a medical instrument used during an interventional procedure in a vascular system of a patient, the instructions comprising:

• recording a three-dimensional volume image of the vascular system at least in an intervention region;
• deriving from the three-dimensional volume image, three-dimensional vessel course information, the three-dimensional vessel course information comprising centerlines of at least vessels used by the medical instrument during the interventional procedure, surface information of at least the vessels used by the medical instrument during the interventional procedure, volume information of at least the vessels used by the medical instrument during the interventional procedure, a position of ostia along at least a part of the vessels, or any combination thereof;
• recording a two-dimensional projection image of the medical instrument using an x-ray device, wherein the x-ray device, the projection image, or the x-ray device and projection image are registered to the three-dimensional volume image;
• and
• determining the stiffness information of the medical instrument, the determining of the stiffness information of the medical instrument comprising evaluating the projection image using segmentation information determined by segmenting the instrument in the projection image, the vessel course information, or the projection image and the vessel course information.