Technology and Methods That Save Lives

Technology and Methods That Save Lives

Adonys
Lee High School
4/12/16

Technology and Methods That Save Lives

Advancements in technology, as it is related to neurosurgery, helps prevent injuries or

diseases of the brain by using specific technology, alternative methods used and focused
treatment. These technological advancements include many systems that help neurosurgeons
navigate through the human brain and spinal cord to locate diseases to try to stop them.
Advancements in technology have helped neurosurgeons in preventing diseases and
injuries of the brain and spinal cord.
There are numerous technology devices that are used to prevent injuries and diseases of
the brain. These tools are used to eliminate, locate and prevent any further spreading of diseases
like tumors.
The tools that are used by the surgeons can be used to go navigate through a persons
brain and lets the doctor go through without harming the brain. The ClearPoint System is a
MRI guided system that is continuously navigating during the surgery for high end resolution of
the brains tissue. The technology that is used lets the doctor do minimal invasive procedures in
the brain, including asleep deep brain stimulation, brain tissue biopsy and laser ablation to treat
epilepsy (Spectrum Health Group).
Some tools used by surgeons help them measure the blood flow and that gets them the
information they need to proceed with the info necessary to succeed. The Functional MRI
measures the blood flow in the brain providing information on brain activity. Physicians use the
Functional MRI to map the brain before specific types of surgery to decide exactly which part
of the brain is handling critical functions, like thought, speech, movement and sensation. It can
also be used to determine the effects of stroke, trauma or degenerative diseases on the brain
(Spectrum Health Group).

Technology and Methods That Save Lives

Surgeons use specific technology that gives the doctor the ability to see brain and spinal
tumors while doing surgery. This gives them an edge on how to get rid of tumors and where to
cut to get them out. The Intraoperative MRI allows doctors to clearly see brain or spinal tumors
while performing surgery. The use of the MRI during tumor removal surgery greatly reduces the
risk of damaging other areas located near a tumor and helps confirm successful removal of the
entire tumor. Surgeons can use it to remove difficult brain tumors, like pituitary tumors, with
greater accuracy and safety. They can also use it for deep brain stimulation and epilepsy surgery
(Spectrum Health Group).
The Surgeons that conduct surgery use a device that allows them to navigate through the
body with the use of 3D images to help them reach an exact location on where a tumor or a
disease is located. This technology that was developed helps them prevent from doing any
further harm to tissues or any vital organs while performing a procedure. The StealthStation
Treatment Guidance System lets the surgeons navigate through the body using images taken
from a variety of imaging sources like an X-ray, CT and an MRI. By using the 3D images,
surgeons can focus on an exact location they need to reach during surgery without affecting
adjacent muscle, tissue, nerves, or blood vessels (Spectrum Health Group).
Brain imaging is really common when working to find an exact location of a disease or
making an non-invasive procedure to avoid damaging anything vital. Magnetoencephalography
(MEG) is a non-invasive neurophysiological technique used to study the cerebral cortex
(Frontiers in Neurology).
Some techniques involve a device that can scan the human brain and detect tumors,
injuries, or diseases to tissue. Brain scans are imaging techniques used to diagnose tumors,
blood vessel malformations, or hemorrhage in the brain. These scans are used to study organ

Technology and Methods That Save Lives

function or injury or disease to tissue or muscle (NIH). This helps finding the causes of disease
much faster and improves chances of success during surgery.
Neurosurgeons also take risks when performing procedures like a brain biopsy to
determine what kind of tumor is inside so that they may be able to approach it in a way like no
other. A brain biopsy, used to determine tumor type, requires surgery to remove a small piece
of the brain or tumor. Performed in a hospital, this operation is riskier than a muscle biopsy and
involves a longer recovery period (NIH).
Brain scans tell the surgeon whats happening to the persons brain on either the front or
the back. A healthy brain usually shows no signs of activity and no holes whereas one with
alzheimer's disease would have the back part of the brain deteriorate at an unprecedented rate.
Alzheimers disease actually starts in the brain 30-50 years before you have any symptoms
(Daniel Amen).
To sum it up, advancements in technology and methods that have helped so many
neurosurgeons have been absolutely helpful with reducing risks. They also allow the surgeon to
begin countermeasures against any type of disease they might encounter and act quickly. The
technology used is extremely helpful with finding an exact location of a tumor in the brain
perhaps or a brain hemorrhage that couldnt be detected until recently with newfound tech. It has
been used as a way to move up in medicine and use that advanced technology as a way to reduce
casualties during surgical procedures.

Technology and Methods That Save Lives

Work Cited
Spectrum Health The Medical Group. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2016. <http://www.shmg.org/neurology>.

Paggiaro, Andrea, Niels Birbaumer, Marianna Cavinato, Cristina Turco, and Emanuela Formaggio Alessandra Del
Felice.Magnetoencephalography in Stroke Recovery and Rehabilitation. N.p.: n.p., n.d. N. pag. Web. 15 Apr. 2016.
<http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fneur.2016.00035/full>.

National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. N.p., 1 Mar. 2005. Web. 17 Apr. 2016.
<http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/misc/diagnostic_tests.htm>.
Amen, Daniel, dir. Web. 18 Apr. 2016. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=esPRsT-lmw8>.