In Italy, a team of more than 10 doctors performed an operation on a 35-year-old patient brain tumor. In total, the highly complex procedure took 9 hours to complete. The strange fact is that CZ – the name by which the man was identified – was awake while interfering and playing the saxophone.
Brain surgery was performed at Padia International Hospital in Rome last week. According to the medical team in charge, the unconventional procedure was a success. The brain tumor was completely removed without compromising the neurological functions of the patient and he is a musician.
In the history of medicine, other craniofacial operations – openings in the skull to remove tumors – were performed on awake patients, such as CZ. Some even played the violin.However, this is still a rare and somewhat complicated procedure. The first such operation took place in 1886 in the United Kingdom.
Why was the man playing the saxophone while he was undergoing surgery?
“The tumor was located in a very complex area of the brain. The patient is also left-handed. This makes things more complicated because the neural pathways to the brain are more complex,” explains Dr. Christian Brugna, who is responsible for the tumor removal. CBS News.
“The goal of surgery while awake is to remove a brain tumor or vascular malformation, such as cavernous tumors located in certain areas of the brain, thus preserving the patient’s quality of life,” explains Dr. Brugna.
If the patient is not awake, the risk of doctors causing some permanent neurological change in the patient is high, including loss of the ability to play the instrument. While CZ was playing the saxophone, it was possible to visualize which areas of the brain were activated and spared, that is, functions were preserved.
“Each surgery while awake, not only allows you to get the maximum result in terms of removing the pathology, but is also a real discovery. It gives us a window [única] for [observar] The performance of this amazing but in many ways still organ, Brugna adds, is the mysterious brain.”
Next, check out the CZ patient playing the saxophone while undergoing surgery in Italy:
source: CBS And the Baidia International Hospital
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