Mixed reality assisted target localization for transcranial magnetic stimulation navigation: a feasibility study.
Overview
- Department of Neurosurgery, School of Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xiamen University, Xiamen University,Xiamen, 361003 China
- National Institute for Data Science in Health and Medicine, Xiamen University,Xiamen, 361003 China
- Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, School of Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xiamen University, Xiamen University,Xiamen, 361003 China
- Department of Scientific Research, School of Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xiamen University, Xiamen University,Xiamen, 361003 China
Abstract
Background: Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), as a non-invasive neurostimulation technique, modulates neural activity by applying electromagnetic fields to specific areas of the brain. It is clinically used for several approved indications, including major depressive disorder, obsessive‑compulsive disorder, and migraine with aura, and is under active investigation for other neurological and psychiatric conditions. Accurate stimulation targeting is crucial for the effectiveness of TMS. Existing targeting methods, such as generic brain localization caps and the international 10–20 electroencephalogram (EEG) system, generally provide only rough localization, leading to significant targeting errors. In recent years, significant progress has been made in the application of mixed reality (MR) technology in medicine, particularly in surgical navigation, offering new ideas and possibilities for developing a simple, low-cost, and efficient TMS navigation system.
Objective: This study proposes, for the first time, a portable MR navigation system for non-invasive neural modulation target localization. The aim is to evaluate its localization accuracy and operational efficiency in TMS through preclinical validation. This system seeks to provide a simple and high-precision localization solution for other non-invasive technologies, with the goal of improving localization accuracy and simplifying the operational workflow in clinical applications.
Methods: The system is based on Microsoft HoloLens 2 and features three specifically designed interaction tools. Five different types of simulation head models were selected, and ten target points were set on each head model. CT scanning was used to obtain imaging data for each head model. Three researchers used the system to perform target localization and repeated the verification process by adjusting the head model posture (from standing to lying) to assess localization accuracy and efficiency.
Results: The validation conducted by the three researchers showed the following results: In the standing position of the simulated head model, the measurement errors were 2.4 (IQR: 1.4–2.7) mm, 2.3 (IQR: 1.7–2.7) mm, and 2.6 (IQR: 1.9–3.0) mm, respectively. In the lying position of the simulated head model, the measurement errors were 1.9 (IQR: 1.6–2.4) mm, 2.0 (IQR: 1.4–3.0) mm, and 2.5 (IQR: 1.9–2.9) mm, respectively. There was a significant difference between researchers (p < 0.05), but no significant difference within the same researcher (p > 0.05).
Conclusion: The TMS-Guide, based on mixed reality technology, is a portable and simple navigation solution that provides higher localization accuracy than traditional manual targeting. It shows promising potential for broader applications in non-invasive neural modulation and brain-computer interface fields.
Reproduced under the paper's license (CC BY), from the paper cited above.
Code
The paper says that its authors' code is available on request: it was not published with the paper, so there is nothing to verify.
The paper's code and data availability statement is in the Data section.
Tracing map
A tracing map links a paper to the code its authors published: this paper has none (its code is available on request), so it has no map.
Data
No dataset and no data link were found in the paper.
Data availability
The complete software and full tool model files will be shared upon reasonable request for the purpose of replication by contacting the corresponding author.
Reproduced under the paper's license (CC BY), from the paper cited above.
Versions
The history of this record: each version stored by the harvester or made by a correction of its authors or of the maintainers of its code, and what changed in its facts. The texts of the paper (its abstract, its availability statements) are not part of it; versions that changed only those are not listed.
Version 1, 27 September 2026: the first record
Recorded: type, language, journal, volume, issue, pages, dates, 11 authors, 4 keywords, 5 MeSH terms, 1 funder, 35 references.
Cite
This paper
Shi, Z., Yuan, Z., Gao, L., Hu, Y., Ni, G., Liao, W., Xie, Y., He, J., Xiao, D., Chen, X., & Wang, Z. (2026). Mixed reality assisted target localization for transcranial magnetic stimulation navigation: a feasibility study. Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitation, 23(1), 238. https://
BibTeX
@article{shi2026mixed,
author = {Shi, Zhongjie and Yuan, Zhengbo and Gao, Lu and Hu, Yahui and Ni, Guoxin and Liao, Wenhui and Xie, Yuting and He, Jiawei and Xiao, Deyong and Chen, Xueqin and Wang, Zhanxiang},
title = {{Mixed reality assisted target localization for transcranial magnetic stimulation navigation: a feasibility study}},
journal = {Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitation},
year = {2026},
month = jun,
volume = {23},
number = {1},
pages = {238},
publisher = {BMC},
issn = {1743-0003},
doi = {10.1186/
url = {https://
pmid = {42271499},
pmcid = {PMC13480267}
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
AU - Shi, Zhongjie
AU - Yuan, Zhengbo
AU - Gao, Lu
AU - Hu, Yahui
AU - Ni, Guoxin
AU - Liao, Wenhui
AU - Xie, Yuting
AU - He, Jiawei
AU - Xiao, Deyong
AU - Chen, Xueqin
AU - Wang, Zhanxiang
TI - Mixed reality assisted target localization for transcranial magnetic stimulation navigation: a feasibility study
T2 - Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitation
J2 - J Neuroeng Rehabil
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/
VL - 23
IS - 1
SP - 238
SN - 1743-0003
PB - BMC
DO - 10.1186/
UR - https://
LA - en
ER -
CSL-JSON
{
"id": "10.1186/
"type": "article-journal",
"title": "Mixed reality assisted target localization for transcranial magnetic stimulation navigation: a feasibility study",
"container-title": "Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitation",
"author": [
{
"family": "Shi",
"given": "Zhongjie"
},
{
"family": "Yuan",
"given": "Zhengbo"
},
{
"family": "Gao",
"given": "Lu"
},
{
"family": "Hu",
"given": "Yahui"
},
{
"family": "Ni",
"given": "Guoxin"
},
{
"family": "Liao",
"given": "Wenhui"
},
{
"family": "Xie",
"given": "Yuting"
},
{
"family": "He",
"given": "Jiawei"
},
{
"family": "Xiao",
"given": "Deyong"
},
{
"family": "Chen",
"given": "Xueqin"
},
{
"family": "Wang",
"given": "Zhanxiang"
}
],
"container-title-short":
"volume": "23",
"issue": "1",
"page": "238",
"DOI": "10.1186/
"PMID": "42271499",
"PMCID": "PMC13480267",
"ISSN": "1743-0003",
"publisher": "BMC",
"URL": "https://
"language": "en",
"issued": {
"date-parts": [
[
2026,
6,
10
]
]
}
}
Similar papers
The papers with a page that share the most with this one: the tools found in their code, their categories, datasets, cited references and authors, the rarest counting most.
- [1] doi:10.3389/fneur.2026.1808769
- Pre-treatment structural brain biomarkers predict response to repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation in subjective tinnitus.Journal: Frontiers in neurologyIn common: other, 2 references
- [2] doi:10.1007/s10103-026-04962-w
- Comparative efficacy and safety of photobiomodulation, transcranial direct current stimulation, and repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation in Alzheimer's disease: a network meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Journal: Lasers in medical scienceIn common: other, 1 reference
- [3] doi:10.1088/1741-2552/ae4382 [code]
- Optimization, implementation, and performance of TMS coils with maximum focality and various stimulation depths.Journal: Journal of neural engineeringIn common: other, 1 reference
- [4] doi:10.1038/s41598-026-61560-0 [code]
- An automated derivative-based method for detection of motor evoked potential onset latencies in multi-muscle transcranial magnetic stimulation studies.Journal: Scientific reportsIn common: other, 1 reference
- [5] doi:10.1371/journal.pcbi.1014154 [code]
- Complexity of resting cortical activity predicts neurophysiological responses to theta-burst stimulation but fails to generalize: A rigorous machine-learning approach.Journal: PLoS computational biologyIn common: other, 1 reference
- [6] doi:10.3758/s13415-026-01428-y
- Role of the inferior frontal gyrus and impulsivity in approach motivation: A low-frequency repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation study.Journal: Cognitive, affective & behavioral neuroscienceIn common: other, 1 reference
- [7] doi:10.1038/s41467-026-70346-x [code]
- Multimodal evidence for hippocampal engagement and modulation by functional connectivity-guided parietal TMS.Journal: Nature communicationsIn common: other, 1 reference
- [8] doi:10.1016/j.isci.2026.116829
- Temporal dynamics of frontoparietal processing during personal space intrusion.Journal: iScienceIn common: 1 reference
- [9] doi:10.1038/s41467-026-75826-8
- Transcranial focused ultrasound modulates spiking, LFP, and BOLD activity in the primate thalamus.Journal: Nature communicationsIn common: other, 1 reference
- [10] doi:10.1126/sciadv.aed4944 [code]
- Focused ultrasound blood-brain barrier opening reveals a paradoxical remote metabolic response in the primate brain.Journal: Science advancesIn common: other, 1 reference
Contribute
The authors of this paper can claim it, correct its record and validate its tracing map, and the maintainers of its code (its owner, or a public member of its organization) correct what it says of their repository; anyone signed in can ask for its removal. Every request goes to OSCR's own machine, which answers it; your account page follows them.
Sign in with ORCID to claim this paper as one of its authors, correct its record or validate its tracing map: when the paper's metadata lists your ORCID iD, you are recognized at once. Maintainers of its code: sign in with GitHub, then claim the repository on your account page.
Claim this paper
Correct its record
Say what each link of this record is, remove the ones that are not the paper's, add the ones that are missing. The correction becomes a new version of the record, in its Versions section.
Request its removal
To ask OSCR to remove this record, the copies of its authors' scripts or its tracing map, use the removal request page: signed in, you say who you are, what to remove and why, then review and confirm the request. Published rules decide every request (how).
Discussion, reproductions, activity
Discussion: questions and error reports about this paper and its code, from signed-in readers and its authors. It opens with sign-in.
Reproductions: reports from readers who ran the authors' code: what they reproduced, with which environment, commit and data. It opens with sign-in.
Activity: what happens around this paper: new versions of its record, its map's validation, discussions and reproductions. It opens with sign-in.