An interpolation program creates intermediate slices between the digitized slices and then fills in these with cubic voxels, thus creating a volume in abstract stereotactic space. Intracranial mass lesions are volumes in space. This is easily apparent on review of contiguous CT and MRI slice images of the lesion. However, translation of this three dimensional surgical operating space within the patient s head is difficult and imprecise during an open operation. Indeed, there may even be difficulty in finding some subcortical tumors.
Brain tissue is damaged unnecessarily.
This can result in neuralgic deficit and prolonged and expensive rehabilitation efforts. A surgeon can not tell where the tumor ends and normal brain begins. Thus there is some risk that the surgeon can resect normal brain tissue along with the tumor. In important brain areas, this will also result in neurological deficit. A surgeon performs a subtotal removal of the lesion.