The Fluorescence Enhanced Neurosurgery Appeal
Any procedure involving surgery on the brain is, quite obviously, an extremely complex procedure. The key to ensuring a positive outcome for the patient is for the neurosurgeon to have as complete a picture as possible, not merely of the tissue he or she is working on, but the effects on surrounding tissue. In neurovascular surgery, for example when repairing vessels damaged by an aneurysm/ haemorrhage, the ability to clearly monitor the effect on blood-flow in adjacent brain tissue is crucial to ensuring a successful outcome. At present, surgeons at the Wessex Neurological Centre rely heavily on the use of micro-dopplers which give an audible indication of blood-flow. However, this method provides only very localised information to the surgeon.
Fluorescence Enhanced Neurosurgery (FEN) offers a completely new way of visualising blood-flow in the brain which provides the surgeon with far superior data than is currently possible. Prior to surgery, patients are injected with a contrast dye which, when viewed through a neurosurgical operating microscope equipped with the FL800 Fluorescence system, enables the surgeon to see exactly how blood-flow in surrounding vessels is affected by his/her actions. Having this real-time information will eliminate the need for on-table angiography, reduce the likelihood of repeat surgery being required, and reduce the possibility of either a recurrence of the bleed or of a post-operative stroke.
Surgeons at the Wessex Neurological Centre perform vascular neurosurgery on hundreds of patients per annum. By equipping one of the Centre’s operating theatres with a new, state-of-the-art, operating microscope fitted with the FL800 Fluorescence system, most if not all of these patients will benefit. Of course, such technology is expensive and it is estimated that around £200,000 will need to be raised, but we are hopeful that public support for this latest project will be as generous as it has been for our previous appeals.
Please click HERE to download the FEN Appeal leaflet.
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