World's first magnetic resonance imaging/x-ray/operating room suite: a significant milestone in the improvement of neurosurgical diagnosis and treatment.
OBJECTIVE
In February 2006, the magnetic resonance/x-ray/operating room (MRXO) suite opened at the authors' institution. This is the first hybrid neurosurgical procedure suite to combine magnetic resonance (MR) imaging, computed tomography (CT), and angiography within a neurosurgical operating room (OR). In the present paper the authors describe the concept of the MRXO as well as their first 10 months of experience using this suite, and discuss its advantages and limitations.


METHODS
In the MRXO suite, the combined OR and angiography (OR-angiography) station is located in the middle of the suite, and the MR imaging and CT scanning stations are each installed in an adjoining bay connected to the OR-angiography station by shielded sliding doors. The surgical, MR imaging, angiography, and CT tables are positioned in order of use. The patient lies on a fully MR imaging- and radiography-compatible mobile patient tabletop that is used to move the patient quickly and safely among the tables in the imaging and operating components of the MRXO suite.


RESULTS
The authors performed all interventional procedures safely. The specially designed operating tabletop of the MRXO suite reduced the limitations on neurosurgeons during standard neurosurgical procedures. This hybrid suite helps to provide high-quality intraoperative imaging, greatly reducing the risk of unexpected events during the procedure.


CONCLUSIONS
The MRXO suite, which combines OR and imaging equipment, represents a significant milestone in the improvement of neurosurgical diagnosis and treatment and other interventional procedures. Another advantage of the MRXO suite is its cost-effectiveness, which is partly due to its streamlined imaging procedure.
Matsumae
Mitsunori
M
Department of Neurosurgery, 2Radiology, Tokai University School of Medicine, Kanagawa, Japan. mike@is.icc.u-tokai.ac.jp
Koizumi
Jun
J
Fukuyama
Haruo
H
Ishizaka
Hideo
H
Mizokami
Yoshihito
Y
Baba
Tanefumi
T
Atsumi
Hideki
H
Tsugu
Atsushi
A
Oda
Shinri
S
Tanaka
Yutaka
Y
Osada
Takahiro
T
Imai
Masaaki
M
Ishiguro
Tomoko
T
Yamamoto
Minako
M
Tominaga
Jiro
J
Shimoda
Masami
M
Imai
Yutaka
Y
D000792:Angiography; D019719:Diagnostic Equipment; D003954:Diagnostic Services / Q000458:organization & administration; D005160:Facility Design and Construction; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D019635:Neurosurgical Procedures / Q000295:instrumentation; D009873:Operating Rooms / Q000458:organization & administration*; D013523:Surgical Equipment; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed