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Akron General's Neuroscience Institute, Gamma Knife radiosurgery is also appli- cable for selected patients with certain functional neurologic disorders, such as trigeminal neuralgia (which causes severe facial pain) and essential tremor. "The most common use is for meta- static cancer," he says. "It also works well for benign tumors in difficult to reach locations, such as meningioma, acoustic neuroma, and pituitary adenoma. For people who have multiple tumors, it's ideal because it's easier than traditional surgery — there's no general anesthetic, no incision, and no inpatient hospital stay because it's an outpatient procedure. And it can be done in less than an hour." Gamma Knife radiosurgery is also ideal for patients who are unable to have traditional surgery, such as the elderly or those who have complicated medical issues. In addition, it may be an option for people with brain tumors who have had previous surgery or treatment that failed. "The Gamma Knife is a cutting edge, state-of-the-art technology," says Dr. Fromm. "Our principal reason for bringing this to Akron General is that a number of our patients who needed SRS had to drive or be transported to Cleveland. And, for many patients, it was quite a chore to do this. Now, they can receive their treatment closer to home." The Gamma Knife system is the latest in a number of recent technological additions made at Akron General for neurosurgical and neurological care. A Neuro Intensive Care Unit — the first in Summit County — opened earlier this year at Akron General Medical Center. The 10-bed unit features a portable CT scanner and continuous EEG monitoring Sarel J. Vorster, MD, medical director of Akron General's Neuroscience Institute, holds the adjustable head frame utilized with Akron General's new Leksel Gamma Knife Perfexion system. for patients experiencing silent seizures. In addition, renovations of four operat- ing suites were recently completed and additional advanced technology was installed, including Brainsuite intra- operative MRI (iMRI) and intra-operative CT (iCT) to provide surgeons with precise and up-to-date anatomical informa- tion during neurosurgery and improve outcomes; and Brainsuite NET to provide intra-operative access to patient data from Akron General's Picture Archiving and Communications System (PACS) and control the flow of all digital data within the operating room. Akron General is reportedly one of only a handful of hospitals worldwide to offer both iMRI and iCT. These systems integrate intra-operative imag- ing — from high-field MRI to multi-slice CT — with surgical navigation, plan- ning and digital data management in the operating room. "What we're offering, for patients and their referring physicians, is cutting edge, state-of-the art treatment that they never were able to get locally before," says Dr. Vorster. To refer a patient to Akron General's Gamma Knife Center, call 330-344-3100. s NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 2012 s MDNEWS.COM s MD NEWS Cleveland/Akron/Canton | 15 PHOTO © JOE SMITHBERGER, SMITHBERGER PHOTOGRAPHY, NORTH CANTON