Surgical Theater is new technology that allows surgeons the ability to take a virtual tour inside patients brains Louisville Courier Journal

The goggles and hand controls look like a typical video game but this virtual reality system isn't a plaything.

It's Surgical Theater, the newest tool at Norton Children's Hospital used by pediatric neurosurgeons preparing for surgery.The high tech system helps doctorsbetter perform surgery andgives a young patient andtheir family a better way to understand their condition from the inside out.

Maybe another way to explain Surgical Theater is to think about the way pilots train to fly a new plane.

Theyspend hours on the ground in flight simulators perfectingboth routine and rarely-used skills so that when they are miles above the earth they are overly prepared.

Similarly, the immersive 3D visuals of the Surgical Theater technology allow surgeons to plan for brain surgeries and practice procedures before they set foot inthe operating room. In fact, the technology, which helps improve outcomes in the operating room, was created by an Israeli fighter pilot who understood the advantages of training in a simulator before taking flight.

Having this new technology really helps us with surgical planning and execution, and allows us to better educate patients and families about their treatment options,"said Dr. Ian S. Mutchnick, a neurosurgeon with Norton Childrens Neurosurgery.

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Screen grabs from the video of a tour of a human brain at Norton Children's Hospital utilizing their new Surgical Theater.(Photo: By Michael Clevenger/Courier Journal)

So how does it work?

Wearing virtual reality goggles,the same type worn by serious gamers,Dr. Thomas Moriarty, another pediatric neurosurgeon at Norton Children's Hospital, virtually steps inside his patients brain and travels anywhere he needs to go.

"This technology is so vastly different than what we had to work with when I was a medical student," said Moriarty. "State-of-the-art. Twenty years ago, it meant looking at black and white two-dimension scans on a couple of separate screens and half crossing your eyes to get an idea of what you were looking at."

Today when he works with medical students using SurgicalTheater, Moriarty can see in their faces when they "instantly get" what they are looking at.

"Using this tool isso much easier to understand that it used to be,"he said.

Norton Childrens Hospital is the first pediatric hospital in the region to offer this virtual reality medical imagining system. The technology wasmade possible through the Childrens Hospital Foundation with support from the community, WHAS Crusade for Children and Texas Roadhouse.

In the lab, 2D images from MRI, CAT and blood vessel scans are combinedto create the 360-degree, color virtual reality model of the skull.

Now bysimply turning their head, the surgeon can explore a patient's anatomy and plan everything from the craniotomy, the surgical opening into the skull, to a clear surgical path andtrajectory for the procedure. They can alsotake measurements, prepare for abnormalities and practice with different surgical tools so they know the best equipment to use for each individual case.

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Kirby Adams tries on the Surgical Theater goggles to take a tour of a brain with Surgical Theater technician Andrew Carlson at Norton Children's Hospital,(Photo: By Michael Clevenger/Courier Journal)

The cutting edge technology isn't just a benefit to the arsenal of brain surgeons at Norton Children's Hospital but it's proving to make brain surgery less frightening for patients and their families.

"We have the patient and their parents put on the goggles and we show them aroundthe brain," Mutchnick said."Using the VR headset and controller, we can guide a family through their childs brain, seeing the anatomy from all angles."

This "walk-in" view of a patient's brain isa valuable tool for a better understanding of their condition and treatment plan.

Kids dont stop to wonder about the joystick or the virtual reality headset, Dr. Mutchnick said. They just step up, take the controller and start looking around.

Norton Children's Hosptialexpects to use the one-of-a-kind view inside the headon more than 100 local patients a year. To learn more or to donate to Norton Children's Hospital, visitnortonchildrens.com/foundation/ways-to-help/.

Reach Kirby Adams at kadams@courier-journal.com or Twitter@kirbylouisville. Support strong local journalism by subscribing today:courier-journal.com/kirbya.

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Louisville parents can now step into their kid's brain with this lifesaving technology - Courier Journal