In Vitro and in Vivo Experimental Studies of A Novel MR-Guided Method for Bipolar Radiofrequency Liver Ablation

Abstract

This paper aims to investigate the feasibility of using a parallel method for MR-guided bipolar radiofrequency ablation. Experimental validations using fresh pig livers and rabbit livers were performed on a 0.35T open MR system with MR-compatible electrodes. The comparison studies of the proposed method and the conventional method were conducted. Experimental results showed that the parallel method offers better performance than the conventional method, which shortens the puncture durations and creates more spherical ablation zones. The bipolar radiofrequency ablation was carried out successfully without causing thermal damage and puncture injury. The proposed method significantly improved radiofrequency ablation, which has the potential to become a promising tool for liver tumor ablation.