General Considerations About Intraoperative Neurophysiology and Monitoring

Abstract

Initially, the purpose of intraoperative ­neurophysiological monitoring was to reduce the risks of permanent injuries to the nervous system that may cause neurologic deficits, muscles spasm, tinnitus, or pain. This is still the main purpose of using electrophysiological methods in the operating room, but now such techniques are also used for a wide range of purposes, and it has been suggested to use the name intraoperative neurophysiology for all uses of neurophysiological techniques in the operating room. These areas of intraoperative neurophysiology now include intraoperative mapping of structures such as the cerebral cortex and the spinal cord, intraoperative diagnosis such as of peripheral nerves, specific guidance regarding microvascular decompression (MVD) operations for hemifacial spasm (HFS), and for finding the best anatomical location for implantation of electrodes for deep brain stimulation (DBS). Such tasks have become important parts of intraoperative neurophysiology.