KUSUDA Kaori    Department   Research Institutes and Facilities, Research Institutes and Facilities    Position
Article types	Original article
Language	English
Peer review	Peer reviewed
Title	Development of a Surgical Sponge Counting System Using Radiographic Images.
Journal	Formal name：Surgical innovation Abbreviation：Surg Innov ISSN code：15533514/15533506
Domestic / Foregin	Foregin
Volume, Issue, Page	27(6),pp.647-652
Author and coauthor	KUSUDA Kaori†, YAMASHITA Kazuhiko, TANAKA Shinich, TANAKA Kiyohito, OHTA Yuj
Authorship	Lead author
Publication date	2020/07/29
Summary	Background. Retention of surgical sponges in patients is a relatively frequent medical malpractice. To prevent it, the surgical sites are scanned using X-ray. However, using radiography in the operation room induces X-ray exposure for both patients and staff. To prevent such issues, a novel sponge counting system was developed. Each surgical sponge used in common hospitals is composed of single radiopaque fibers. Methods. The proposed system scans surgical sponges to estimate their fiber length (EFL) and returns the number of it. In this study, an optimal image acquisition protocol was determined that allows an accurate count of sponges. X-ray doses and multi-angle image procedures were tested. Results. Measurement trials were performed and compared for both dry and blood-soaked sponges. As a result, the X-ray dose of 50 kV and 600 μA and the acquisition of 180 images per sample yielded an accurate EFL. The 180-image protocol achieved good performance in this study and allowed counting of one package of 10 sponges in 226 seconds. For these settings, a significant correlation was found between the actual number of sponges and the estimated fiber lengths. Additionally, the performance of the system was similar for either dry or blood-soaked items. Conclusion. The proposed system could accurately count surgical sponges and is a promising option in preventing the accidental retention of surgical sponges.
DOI	10.1177/1553350620943349
PMID	32723214