Editor's Note A new brain implant could one day restore voices to those who can no longer speak, the Associated Press (AP) reported March 31. As detailed in the article, researchers have successfully tested the experimental brain-computer interface (BCI) on a 47-year-old woman with quadriplegia who lost the ability to…

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Editor's Note A new noninvasive procedure called magnetic resonance-guided focused ultrasound (MRgFUS) capsulotomy is showing promising results for patients with severe obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), Asian Scientist March 26 reports. In a study conducted by researchers in South Korea and published in Molecular Psychiatry, 10 individuals who received MRgFUS capsulotomy at…

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Editor's Note A newly refined 7T MRI imaging technique may significantly improve outcomes for people with hard-to-treat focal epilepsy by revealing tiny brain lesions that standard imaging methods often miss, HealthDay March 26 reports from a new study published in the journal Epilepsia. Researchers achieved this advance by implementing “parallel…

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Editor's Note A new genetic testing tool could allow surgeons to accurately identify cancer cells in real time during brain surgery, potentially improving surgical outcomes and reducing cancer recurrence, NYU Langone Health System announced.  According to a February 25 press release, the Ultra-Rapid droplet digital PCR (UR-ddPCR) technique identifies cancer…

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Editor's Note A new international study reports low rates of local recurrence, radionecrosis, and leptomeningeal disease in patients receiving neoadjuvant stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) before brain metastases resection, Medscape Medical News reported January 6. Published in Radiotherapy and Oncology, the analysis included 179 patients with 189 brain metastases treated at nine…

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Editor's Note Researchers at UC Davis have developed a brain-computer interface (BCI) implant that has successfully restored speech in a patient with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), whose ability to speak had deteriorated, Fierce Biotech reported August 15. The breakthrough was achieved using neural sensors from Blackrock Neurotech and AI-driven text-to-speech…

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Editor's Note Human trials may begin soon on patients in the UK using tiny, folding brain implants that could improve epilepsy surgery, according to an article published August 12 in The Telegraph. Developed by scientists at Oxford and Cambridge, who published their research in the journal Nature Communications, the implants…

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Editor's Note A mass spectrometry platform that identifies key brain cancer mutations in real-time during surgery shows potential for improving outcomes in a procedure when time is of utmost importance, Technology Networks reported June 3. Developed by the Mayo Clinic, the platform specifically targets dehydrogenase (IDH) mutations on samples taken…

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Editor's Note New evidence from skulls in a university collection reveals that brain surgery dates back millennia—potentially as far back as 4,o00 years ago. CNN reported the news May 29. Researchers expressed uncertainty in some cases whether marks on the skulls indicated surgery to treat a living person or an…

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Editor's Note Microscopic stainless steel debris on the insides of biopsy needles prompted the FDA to issue a class 1 recall—indicating risk of death or serious injury—for Elekta Instrument’s Disposable Biopsy Needle Kit, which is used with the Leksell Stereotactic System for brain tissue sampling during neurosurgery, the disposable biopsy…

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