Curve Image Guided Surgery Provides Swedish Covenant Hospital With a State-of-the-Art Command and Control Center for Information-Guided Surgery

CHICAGO, April 16, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Swedish Covenant Hospital today announced the success of its first prone occipital brain tumor case using Curve™ Image Guided Surgery by Brainlab, the ultimate command and control center for information-guided surgery.

"Having the option to use image guidance for a prone, occipital brain tumor case without fiducials increases the flexibility and visualization in these types of procedures, and makes me very confident about the surgery and patient outcome," said Jerrel Boyer, M.D., neurosurgeon, Swedish Covenant Hospital, (Chicago, IL).

"For the procedure, we placed the patient in the prone position which offers the best visualization of the surgical area.  The Curve camera can telescope down to a low height, offering easy registration for navigation even when the patient is lying in the prone position. I was able to review the patient scans using the Curve Interactive DICOM Viewer and then load the image data into the navigation software. The Curve touch screen made manipulation of the scans easy and smooth," explained Dr. Boyer.

Brainlab Curve features the latest image guidance software powering advanced 3D displays and hallmark Brainlab image enrichment. This advanced technology allows ultra-fast image updating when tracking instruments, which promotes intra-operative confidence.

"I was very confident with the accuracy I achieved when registering this patient with the image guidance system. The two extra large touch screens and the smart features like Auto Zoom were especially advantageous. I look forward to utilizing the full capabilities of Curve, including microscope integration, PACS connection, and the Capture, Encode, Record, Stream (CERS) functionality, in future cases," added Dr. Boyer. CERS allows surgeons to record anything displayed on a Curve monitor including the Interactive DICOM viewer, navigation software, and external sources plugged into Curve, such as endoscopes or microscopes.  Surgeons can access these records for research and teaching purposes, and viewing at a later date. These recordings can be downloaded from the CERS web portal, or exported directly from Curve itself.

Curve integrates a user-centered design approach, offering easy set-up for staff and straightforward integration for surgeons. Brainlab is challenging conventional surgical utility incorporating great ergonomics, two game-changing, multi-directional touch terminals, digital HD, hi-fi and wi-fi*.

"Curve Image Guided Surgery technology is a true industry-leading innovation," said Anthony Guaccio, chief operating officer, Swedish Covenant Hospital. "Curve is an all-encompassing technology that not only enables the collection of vital patient data, but it allows surgeons to seamlessly use and integrate this data intra-operatively in order to provide ultimate patient care and outcomes."

About Swedish Covenant Hospital
Swedish Covenant Hospital is a comprehensive health care facility providing health and wellness services to Chicago's North and Northwest side communities. This 323-bed hospital is one of the few independent, nonprofit hospitals in the area. Its 550 physicians and 2,200 employees remain focused on the hospital's mission of providing compassionate, high quality care in a healing environment.

An established teaching hospital, Swedish Covenant Hospital offers a range of medical programs, including the latest cardiac, cancer, orthopedic, surgical, women's health, back health and emergency services. 

Additionally, Swedish Covenant Hospital serves as a model for health care IT adoption and continually acquires advanced technologies to ensure the highest quality treatment and diagnostics for patients.

About Brainlab
Brainlab develops, manufactures and markets software-driven medical technology that supports targeted, less-invasive treatment.

Among the core products are image-guided systems that provide highly accurate real-time information used for navigation during surgical procedures. This utility has been further expanded to serve as a computer terminal for physicians to more effectively access and interpret diagnostic scans and other digital medical information for better-informed decisions.

Brainlab solutions allow expansion from a single system to operating suites to digitally integrated facilities covering all subspecialties from neurosurgery and spinal surgery to orthopedics, ENT, CMF and trauma and oncology. With about 5,000 systems installed in about 80 countries, Brainlab is a market leader in image-guided technology.

The privately held Brainlab group, founded in 1989, is headquartered in Munich, Germany, and today employs 1,020 people in 17 offices across Europe, Asia, Australia, North and South America.

To learn more about Curve Image Guided Surgery, visit www.brainlabcurve.com.

*FDA clearance pending

Media Contact:
Paula Moggio
Porter Novelli
1-323-762-2434

SOURCE Brainlab