Gh. Barnett et al., USE OF A FRAMELESS, ARMLESS STEREOTAXIC WAND FOR BRAIN-TUMOR LOCALIZATION WITH 2-DIMENSIONAL AND 3-DIMENSIONAL NEUROIMAGING, Neurosurgery, 33(4), 1993, pp. 674-678
PRELIMINARY EXPERIENCE WITH a frameless, armless stereotactic localiza
tion system in brain tumor surgery is presented. The localizing wand e
mits ultrasonic pulses that are detected by a table-mounted array of m
icrophones-with triangulation of the emitter positions. The wand tip a
nd trajectory are determined by proprietary computer software. Real-ti
me display of this information is presented in multiple, two-dimension
al or three-dimensional displays. Forty-eight patients underwent 52 cr
aniotomies for brain tumors. The wand was used to assist in placing a
minimal craniotomy in 48 cases, to determine the tumor/brain interface
in 27 cases, to localize subcortical tumors in 14 cases, and to corre
late the physiological mapping with the surface anatomy in 5 cases. In
12 instances, the wand was used in conjunction with frame stereotaxy
and found to be comparable or superior. Triplanar (coronal, sagittal,
transverse) two-dimensional images provided sufficient information for
the detection of tumor boundaries but proved difficult to use to acce
ss a subcortical lesion; two-dimensional or three-dimensional images a
long the localization axis were more helpful. Frameless stereotaxy wit
h this sonic wand system proved to be a useful adjunct to open-tumor b
iopsy or resection.