BrainLAB Aids in Tumor Diagnosis and Surgery

When it comes to brain surgery, accuracy is crucial. And thanks to a recent advancement in neurosurgical technology, precision in brain and spinal diagnoses and surgery has been greatly improved.

BrainLAB, an interactive neurodiagnostic and neurosurgical tool, became available for use at Guthrie in May 1999, shortly after the arrival of a state-of-the-art CT scanner that interacts with the BrainLAB system.

In conjunction with MRI and CT scans, the BrainLAB system recreates a precise 3-D image of the brain on a large computer screen. This program allows neurosurgeons to plan out their surgical procedure in advance of the surgery. Before the advent of such advanced equipment, neurosurgeons relied on two-dimensional pre-operative images to mentally recreate the patient’s brain in a three-dimensional surgical situation.

During surgery, the neurosurgeon can download the computerized surgical plan into the BrainLAB system. The patient’s brain can also be displayed as a real-time image that can be viewed from multiple angles.

BrainLAB is especially useful to precisely pinpoint tumor location during brain biopsies, which allows physicians to obtain better tumor samples. BrainLAB is better equipped to address tumors deep inside the brain, and also allows the surgeon to drain cysts or brain abscesses using smaller incisions. BrainLAB provides the advantage of technology – the benefit is increased safety for the patient and the fact that neurosurgery will eventually be faster with the help of advances like BrainLAB.