UC San Diego neurosurgeons color code the brain with tractography - the circular object is a tumor.
Brain Surgeons Go with the Flow
Water-Based Imaging Technique Maps Brain Neurons Prior to SurgeryNeurosurgeons at UC San Diego Health System are using a new approach to visualize the brain’s delicate anatomy prior to surgery. The novel technique allows neurosurgeons to see the brain’s nerve connections thus preserving and protecting critical functions such as vision, speech and memory. No needles, dyes or chemicals are needed to create the radiology scan. The main imaging ingredient? Water.
“The brain can be mapped by tracking the movement of its water molecules,” said Clark Chen, MD, PhD, neurosurgeon and vice-chairman of neurosurgery at UC San Diego Health System. “Water molecules in brain nerves move in an oriented manner. However, outside the nerves, the molecules move randomly. Neurosurgeons at UC San Diego can use these distinct properties to locate important connections and to guide where surgery should occur or not.”
The technique, called tractography or diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), has been used for investigational and diagnostic purposes to better understand the effect of stroke and neurological diseases, such as Alzheimer’s. UC San Diego Health System neurosurgeons are among the first in the nation to apply this technology to guide brain tumor surgery.
“There are no margins for error in the brain. Every centimeter of brain tissue contains millions of neural connections so every millimeter counts,” said Chen. “With tractography, we can visualize the most important of these connections to avoid injury. In doing so, we will preserve the quality of life for our patients with brain cancer.”
