What is a Nerve Monitoring System?
A nerve monitoring system, or nerve monitor, facilitates intraoperative neuromonitoring. This system allows surgeons to monitor the real-time functioning of the nerves during surgeries.
It assists surgeons in identifying and preventing damage to vital nerves, such as those of the brain, spine, and vocal cords.
The nerve integrity monitor is generally utilized in ENT, neurosurgery, and orthopedic procedures. It allows for improved surgical precision and patient safety. It enhances overall outcomes and helps preserve sensory and motor function postoperatively.
At HCG, we use advanced technologies to improve the health outcomes and the quality of life for patients. Our nerve monitoring system is one such advanced technology.
How Does a Nerve Monitoring System Work?
A nerve monitoring system detects electrical activity in the nerves during surgery to prevent nerve damage.
The surgeons place electrodes near or on the muscles controlled by the targeted nerve. The electrical signals are recorded in the system when the nerve is stimulated or manipulated.
The nerve integrity monitor displays the signals and may produce an alert sound in real time to catch the surgeons' attention. Based on the output signals, the surgeon may adjust the surgical techniques to avoid damaging the nerve.
The nerve monitoring system ensures higher safety and functional preservation of the nerves in various surgeries, especially related to the spine, brain, thyroid, and peripheral nerves.
What are the Advantages of a Nerve Monitoring System?
Some of the advantages of a nerve monitoring system are:
Real-Time Nerve Function Monitoring
The nerve integrity monitor assesses nerve integrity and provides continuous information to surgeons in real time.
The surgeons, with the assistance of the nerve monitoring system, identify and protect the vital nerves, and the risk of nerve injury is lowered.
Enhanced Surgical Precision
The nerve integrity monitor ensures enhanced surgical precision by providing real-time feedback about the nerve activity during complex and high-risk surgeries.
It lowers the risk of accidental damage by allowing the surgeons to accurately identify the position of the critical nerves and preserve them.
The surgeries are done more precisely by changing the surgical approach based on the interpretation of the monitor's results.
The nerve function monitoring ensures accurate, more controlled dissection and manipulation. It results in fewer complications, improved outcomes, faster postoperative recovery, and nerve function preservation.
Improved Patient Outcomes
Nerve function monitoring systems significantly improve patient outcomes by lowering the risk of nerve injury during surgery.
Nerve integrity monitoring ensures better surgical safety, fewer postoperative neurological deficits, faster recovery, and better long-term functional outcomes. It also provides greater patient satisfaction, improves quality of life after surgery, and lowers the requirement for corrective surgeries.
What are the Applications of Nerve Monitoring Systems?
The nerve monitoring system is used in various surgeries. At HCG, we use the nerve monitoring system during the following surgeries:
- Spinal Oncosurgery: The nerve monitoring system lowers the risk of nerve dysfunction and paralysis during oncosurgeries done to manage spinal malignancies.
- ENT and Head & Neck Oncosurgery: The nerve monitoring system also protects the facial and laryngeal nerves and prevents facial muscle weakness and vocal cord paralysis during oncosurgeries done for thyroid, parathyroid, and parotid gland malignancies.
- Orthopedic Oncosurgery: Surgeons recommend the use of a nerve monitoring system during orthopedic oncosurgery to avoid intraoperative nerve damage.
- Urological and Colorectal Oncosurgery: The nerve monitoring system helps surgeons preserve bowel and bladder function by monitoring the autonomic nerves while performing cancer management surgeries in the pelvic region.
Conclusion
The nerve monitoring system provides real-time, detailed information about nerve activity at the time of complex surgeries. It prevents damage to the nerves and improves surgical precision and overall outcome. It allows surgeons to identify and preserve critical nerves by changing their surgical approach, resulting in a reduced risk of intraoperative damage.
This system is employed during various surgeries, such as brain surgeries, spinal surgeries, neck surgeries, orthopedic surgeries, vascular surgeries, and urological and pelvic surgeries.
