ABC4 News - Medical Innovations: O-arm

In a five-part series, ABC4 highlights “Medical Innovations that Help People Live the Healthiest Lives Possible.”

By combining mobility, low-dose x-ray images and speedy image processing, the O-arm® provides live 3-D navigation during surgery. Within seconds the surgeon receives highly detailed surgical site images. The O-arm® imaging system makes possible more precise placement of spinal hardware. Other benefits include smaller incision, shorter surgery duration, less post-surgical pain and faster recovery than with traditional spine surgery techniques.

Guiding spine surgeons through complex surgeries, the O-arm features a number of innovations that make it superior to the familiar C-arm fluoroscopes currently used in most surgical suites. Neurosurgeons also use the O-arm for navigation on placement of spinal hardware for fusions and fracture repair. It’s also used for cranial navigation for placement of deep brain stimulation electrodes for treatment of Parkinson’s Disease and essential or familial tremor.