PRESS RELEASE
May, 1995
Robotic Navigation System
Increases Precision In Brain Surgery

Brain surgery may soon be safer and more precise, thanks to an automated tool support and image-guided system. Elekta Instrument AB says its SurgiScope system can automatically translate coordinates from any form of scanned imagery into correct tool positioning on the patient. For example, when an area to be treated is selected on the scanned image, a robotic tool-holder can be commanded to move the surgeon’s microscope to the corresponding area of the patient’s brain. Conversely, position of the focal point of the microscope is displayed on the scanned image.

Elekta says its system yields significant benefits for neurosurgeons and their patients. Since the patient’s scanned data are reconstructed in the system’s computer in both two-dimensional and three-dimensional images, the exact position of the target and other areas of interest can be localized and outlined in advance. The surgeon then plans the optimal route to the target in the computer. During surgery, the computer directs the focal point of the microscope along this predetermined pathway on command, explains Göran Sommar, a spokesman for the company.
Guidance is in both directions, in contrast to other systems, he continues: “The boundaries of a tumor, for instance, can be exactly outlined on the image, where they are easier to see than in the brain itself. Then, while conducting the procedure, the surgeon can compare where he is on the patient to his surgical plan on the scanned image, which is continuously updated throughout the operation. This makes the surgery more complete, since he can be more confident he is removing as much of the tumor as possible while not damaging healthy tissue unnecessarily.”
Another advantage of this system, Sommar continues, is that the surgeon can alter his surgical plan during the procedure.
Since the navigation system lessens the risk that critical areas will be damaged during surgery, he says SurgiScope may make it possible to perform procedures once considered too risky. Increasing precision also makes it possible to minimize trauma to the skull and brain of the surgery, thus reducing recovery time and the risk of infection, he adds.
The system will be demonstrated to the press for the first time at the 10th European Congress of Neurosurgery in Berlin, on May 9 at 4:30 pm. Elekta is best known for its Leksell Gamma Knife, which allows surgeons to treat brain tumors through non-invasive surgery.




Caption:
Elekta’s SurgiScope transmits information between the patient, scanned images stored in a computer workstation and a robotic tool-holder.

For more information contact:
Elekta Instrument GmbH
Edgar Schüle
Am Gansacker 10
D-79224 Umkirch
Germany
tel: +49 7665 9844-0
fax: +49 7665 9844-11

Elekta Instrument AB
Sverker Littorin
Po Box 7593
S-103 93 Stockholm
Schweden
tel: +46 8 402-5400
fax: +46 8 402-5500