Project Description: 

One of the most common yet painful conditions that a person can experience is the formation of kidney stones. Kidney stones are solute deposits that form within your kidneys and usually create an obstruction within its structure. These stones are an issue that approximately 10% of the US adult population will face in their lifetimes. There are several challenges associated with the Percutaneous Nephrolithotomy (PCNL) procedure used to remove large kidney stones. These obstacles include navigating a percutaneous access needle around various organs in the path towards the kidney, working with obese patients, and visualization of the needle within the body. Moving forward, this project will seek to address the problem of accessing the kidney in obese patients. Interviews with interventional radiologists have revealed their desire for a needle with an adjustable length, so that the needle could be extended within the procedure to fit the patient’s body habitus. Our solution enables the Interventional Radiologist to extend the needle within the patient, to account for both a change of course in the access route and the patients’ specific body habitus. This ultimately improves patient outcomes for PCNL procedures.