The BodyTom® allows for high-quality CT imaging of the brain and spine in neurosurgery operating rooms. In the past, CT scans had to be performed in scanners located outside the operating room after the conclusion of surgery to check on the results of surgery.
With the BodyTom®, neurosurgeons can obtain important images inside the operating room during surgical procedures, allowing surgeries to be more precise and accurate in targeting key structures. Additionally, BodyTom® enables surgeons to immediately check on the results of an operation before closing, providing surgeons the opportunity to make any necessary refinements to a surgery while the patient is still under anesthesia and in the operating room, thereby reducing the need for return trips to the operating room.
“We are pleased to be the first to offer BodyTom® to the Houston community,” said Ashwin Viswanathan, MD, St. Luke’s Hospital. “This innovative technology has the potential to change the way neurosurgery is performed. It offers our patients a new level of treatment and allows us to be even more accurate when performing delicate brain and spine surgery.”
For Dr. Viswanathan, an expert in deep brain stimulation (DBS), surgery for the treatment of movement disorders such as Parkinson’s disease and essential tremor, the addition of the BodyTom® will make DBS procedures even more precise and safer. The portable scanner also will be used for other neurosurgical procedures, including spinal fusion and instrumentation surgery, brain and pituitary tumor surgery and surgery for the treatment of brain hemorrhages and other neurovascular disorders.
