Personal-Computer-Based System for Three-Dimensional Anatomic-Physiological Correlations during Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery

Abstract

This paper describes the automatic three-dimensional (3D) graphic possibilities that are supplied by the Neurosurgical Deep Recording System (NDRS) to facilitate anatomic-physiological targeting during stereotactic and functional neurosurgery using depth recording. This software has been developed to substitute the complex electronic equipment ordinarily used for deep brain electrical recording, display and processing by a personal computer. It may also help to improve on-line graphic analysis, automatic management of the recorded information and flexibility to implement different forms of signal analysis. It can automatically show a 2D or 3D representation of the electrode track, with the electrophysiological findings superimposed as well as the corresponding sagittal, coronal and axial views of a brain atlas using automatic scaling. The NDRS has already successfully been applied during more than 300 neurosurgeries in Spain and Cuba, enabling improved targeting accuracy and safety.