The Hybrid Operating Room in Neurosurgery: Improving Clinical Outcomes

Clinical presentations by 17 leading neurosurgeons from Germany, Austria and Switzerland at the Langenbeck-Virchow-Haus building in Berlin: The Hybrid operating room (OR) SYMPOSIUM, focusing on intraoperative imaging, was hosted by Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin hospital and Trumpf Medical (Hill-Rom) on April 20, 2018. Some 240 guests enjoyed an impressive, multifaceted overview of the latest Hybrid OR technology and its impact on clinical outcomes in neurosurgery, for example in the case of brain tumor resections.

What stood out about the event was the high level of interdisciplinary collaboration, as it offered a rare opportunity for renowned neurosurgeons and academic researchers to exchange knowledge with representatives from medical technology companies.

The venue, right next to Charité, was the ideal location for the SYMPOSIUM. During the relocation of the Neurosurgery department to the hospital's city-center campus, Campus Mitte, the operating rooms were fitted with updated technology, offering a range of new features. Three new Hybrid ORs were designed to take the neurosurgical care provided to the next level. The Hybrid ORs were equipped with state-of-the-art technology according to their respective areas of use: One was fitted with an intraoperative angiography suite for the treatment of complex cerebrovascular diseases, another was equipped with a mobile CT scanner, and the third was fitted with a 3 T MRI scanner. Right from the planning phase, the Hybrid OR concept was designed to enable interdisciplinary neuroscientific research in the neurosurgical OR.

The considerable benefits of advanced, interdisciplinary collaboration between medical practice, science and industry—as well as between different specialist surgical teams—formed the common thread that ran throughout the SYMPOSIUM.

In his opening speech, Prof. Peter Vajkoczy, Director of the Department of Neurosurgery at Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, also emphasized the need for collaboration, while also discussing the concept of "Neurosurgery 3.0."

If you were unable to attend the SYMPOSIUM in person, you can watch the videos of the individual expert presentations here.

Session 1: Concept of a Hybrid OR

The Hybrid OR: Current and Future Trends
Prof. Dr. med. Oliver Meissner, MBA, Professor for Healthcare Management, Steinbeis University Berlin

Hybrid OR Solutions at Charité
Prof. Dr. med. Peter Vajkoczy, Chairman Department of Neurosurgery, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin

Session 2: MRI Hybrid OR

The Development of ioMRI, Individual Experiences
Prof. Dr. med. Arya Nabavi, Deputy Director Department of Neurosurgery, Director Image Guided Neurosurgical Therapy, International Neuroscience Institute, Hannover

The Value of ioMRI in Glioma Surgery and Extent of Resection
Prof. Dr. med. Dr. med. habil. Christian Senft, Deputy Director and Senior Consultant, Universitätsklinikum Frankfurt

Benefits of ioMRI in Pituitary Surgery
Prof. Dr. med. Rudolf Fahlbusch, Director Endocrine Neurosurgery and ioMRI, International Neuroscience Institute, Hannover

Spectroscopy and Perfusion Imaging in ioMRI: Optimization of Tumor Resection
Priv.-Doz. Dr. med. Constantin Roder, Head, Division of Intraoperative Imaging Technologies Department of Neurosurgery, University Hospital Tübingen

DTI – Fiber Tracking in Glioma Surgery
Prof. Dr. med. Christopher Nimsky, Chairman of Neurosurgery, Universitätsklinikum Gießen und Marburg

Focus on Pediatric Neurosurgery – Specific Features and Outcomes using ioMRI
Priv.-Doz. Dr. med. Oliver Bozinov, Vice Chairman Department of Neurosurgery, UniversitätsSpital Zürich

Current Studies on ioMRI and the “Intraoperative Imaging Society”
Prof. Dr. med. Arya Nabavi, Deputy Director Department of Neurosurgery, Director Image Guided Neurosurgical Therapy, International Neuroscience Institute, Hannover