Basic Neuronavigation Options for Cortical and Subcortical Brain Lesions Surgery

Craniometric points are essential for orienting neurosurgeons in their practice. Understanding the correlations of these points help to manage any pathological lesion located on the cortical surface and subcortically. The brain sulci and gyri should be identified before craniotomy. It is difficult to identify these anatomical structures intraoperatively (after craniotomy) with precision. The main purpose of this study was to collect as much information as possible from the literature and our clinical practice in order to facilitate the placement of craniotomies without using modern neuronavigation systems. Operative reports from the last five years on cranial operations for cortical and subcortical lesions were reviewed. All the craniotomies had been planned, using four methods: detection of craniometric points, computed tomography (CT) scans/topograms, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans/topograms, and intraoperative real-time ultrasonography (USG). Retrospectively, we analyzed 295 cranial operations. Our analysis showed that operating on for cortical lesions, we had frequently used the first and the second method mentioned above (118 patients), while in cases of subcortical lesions, we had used craniometric points, MRI scans/topograms and intraoperative real-time USG as methods of neuronavigation (177 patients). These results show that craniometric points are essential in both neurosurgical procedures.