Awake Brain Surgery is a procedure where patients stay awake while the surgery is being performed. When people hear about brain surgery, what comes to their mind is anaesthesia for deep sleep during surgery. The thought of being awake while having brain surgery might look scary, but it’s a good idea because it protects the patient from negative results that may happen when unconscious, such as memory loss, not waking up, and also moving and speaking. It helps surgeons in removing tumours from delicate areas that need much attention, which may affect speaking, hearing, moving, and remembering. This blog helps understand what awake brain surgery is and what its benefits are.
What Is Awake Brain Surgery?
Awake Brain Surgery is also called craniotomy. It is a procedure whereby a patient stays awake during the brain surgery, especially on delicate parts. Before the surgery begins, the specialist doctors make use of numbing medicine that allows a patient to be comfortable and not feel any pain during the surgery. Having awake brain surgery allows the surgeon to work comfortably with the patient, knowing that the patient can respond to simple tasks that direct the surgeon if he’s doing the correct thing. The patient will be monitored, kept calm, and comfortable throughout the whole process.
Why Do Surgeons Keep Patients Awake During Awake Brain Surgery?
Surgeons keep their patients awake during awake brain surgery to monitor and communicate with them during surgery. The brain holds all the body’s functions, so they keep their patients awake to monitor their speaking, movements, and their responses so that they can avoid areas that may cause harm to the patient. Patients are also kept awake to allow the surgeon to safely and precisely remove the tumour.
What Are The Benefits Of Doing Awake Brain Surgery?
- Maximising the removal of the tumour: When the patient is awake, it makes it easy for the surgeon to remove much of the tumour, monitoring the patient’s movements and responses to avoid any mistakes that may affect the patient’s response system.
- Awake brain surgery helps in the protection of vital functions: Through awake brain surgery, patients have lower chances of losing their ability to speak or move because the surgeon will be monitoring their movements to avoid delicate positions.
- It allows for faster recovery: Patients who undergo brain surgery tend to recover more quickly due to its naturalness; other than unconscious surgery, in which the use of too many sedatives may lead to slower recovery.
- Awake surgery allows for accuracy: Due to the monitoring of the patient at every step of the surgery, the patient’s response helps in the accuracy of the tumour removal.
- It reduces the risks that come with anaesthesia: Patients avoid traditional anaesthesia because of the aftermath it brings, such as nausea.
- It helps in stabilising the nervous system: When a patient is awake, it makes it easier for the surgeon to monitor their blood pressure and their heart rate, which reduces the complications.
- It helps in patient control: When a patient is awake, it helps in reducing anxiety because they feel that they are being involved, which improves stability.
- Awake brain surgeries allow lesser hospital stays: It shortens hospital stays because faster recovery means less hospital stay.
Conclusion
Awake brain surgery brings a great improvement in neurological treatment. Instead of only focusing on performing the surgery for tumour removal, now the doctors also consider the patient’s life after surgery. Considering an experienced team, book your appointment with Dr Sukhdeep Jhawar at Jhawar Neuro Hospital. Dr Sukhdeep Jhawar’s team and patients’ participation make this method a safer way forward for individuals with tumours in delicate areas that need much attention. Get in touch with Neuromaster for you, not just for recovery, but for a chance to continue living your normal life without any complications that come after surgery, like losing the ability to move.
FAQs
Q: Is it not dangerous to stay awake during brain surgery?
- Staying awake during brain surgery is not dangerous because there will be a very skilled anaesthesia team for safety and comfort.
Q: What makes a decision to have awake brain surgery?
- If a patient has a tumour in a delicate place that requires much attention to prevent complications later, that’s when they decide that the patient should undergo awake brain surgery.
