This is my operating room. The centerpiece of a modern neurosurgery OR is the operating microscope. The microscope is a sophisticated machine which not only magnifies and illuminates the surgical field, but also integrates the image with CT and MRI data in a stereotactic workstation. As a result, the neurosurgeon can not only see the delicate structures within the brain and spinal cord as he operates, but can also find the abnormalities shown on the CT or MRI by allowing the microscope to be navigated by the stereotactic computer.

In spine surgery, real-time imaging data is usually obtained by fluoroscopy. The integrated images from the microscope, stereotactic workstation, fluoroscopy machine, and endoscopic equipment are projected on flat screen monitors suspended from the ceiling of the operating room. This forms the technological basis of modern image-guided, stereotactic, minimally invasive and microsurgical techniques in neurosurgery.

State-of-the-Art Neurosurgical Microscope

Screen shot of stereotactic computer attached to the microscope.