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Monitoring systems that track patient position in real time during radiotherapy procedures so that the patient position can be adjusted to allow the radiation to more precisely reach its target (i.e., tumors) thus avoiding unnecessary radiation damage to surrounding healthy tissues and allowing for a higher dosage of radiation to be delivered, a process known as image-guided radiotherapy (IGRT). These monitoring systems usually consist of scanning devices (infrared cameras or laser scanners) mounted on the ceiling near the patient, and integrated computer workstations and dedicated software to calculate needed adjustments in patient position. Infrared monitoring systems may also have a positioning reference device mounted over the treatment couch. Through the use of computer algorithms, the monitoring systems detect any change in position from pre-established parameters (usually in the 1 mm range or less). The monitoring systems have visual computer displays to show patient movement and alarms to alert the technician if adjustments in patient position are needed. Some monitoring systems can be interfaced with the patient couch to make automatic adjustments to the patient\'s position during treatment. Some monitoring systems work in conjunction with other IGRT systems to track respiratory motions for gated radiotherapy delivery. Radiotherapy patient position monitoring systems that use infrared light or lasers as the scanning system are available. They are used in radiotherapy suites to detect patient position changes in real time during radiotherapy.
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