Background. Intraoperative ultrasonography (IOUSG) is one of the increasingly popular neuroimaging techniques in modern neurosurgical practice. The widespread use of this method determines rapid progression of hardware systems, in particular mobile ultrasonography devices, as well as ultrasonography transducers, including specialized intraoperative transducers. All of these factors contribute to better availability of IOSG, which raises the need for information on its use in the surgical treatment of selected pathologies. Lumbosacral lipoma (LSL) is a mass lesion of the lumbosacral region of disembryogenetic origin, forming in the cone of the spinal cord and having different types of growth and relations with the surrounding structures, manifested by subcutaneous tumor-like formation, gradual increase in neurological, urological and orthopedic deficit. The article reflects the main aspects of the use of IOUSG in the surgical treatment of patients with different types of LSL.
OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the applicability of IOUSG in the treatment of patients with various types of LSL, to develop the surgical algorithm for the use of IOUSG during LSL resection procedures.
MATERIAL AND METHODS
We have studied the results of the surgical treatment of 145 patients with different types of LSL operated on by Prof. A.A. Sufianov using the intraoperative neuroimaging method of IOUSG. The study cohort includes 34 patients operated on for LSL resection with a postoperative follow-up period of more than 5 years.
RESULTS
The article shows advantages and disadvantages of IOUSG in comparison with other methods of neuroimaging, as well as descriptions of intraoperative ultrasonographic images of different types of LSL. An algorithm of the surgeon’s actions when applying IOUSG in surgical treatment of patients with LSL is presented.
CONCLUSION
IOUSG can be considered the most successful method for resection of different types of LSL due to good visualization of all necessary anatomical structures at certain stages of the operation. In our opinion, IOUSG can be used as a method of choice for intraoperative neuroimaging in the surgical treatment of LSL.
