The use of the Olympus EndoArm for spinal and skull-based transsphenoidal neurosurgery

Minimally invasive surgical techniques have evolved to reduce soft-tissue injury associated with open surgical techniques. The use of endoscopic visualization allows the exposure of deep structures and provides a mechanism to perform all the components of an open surgical procedure through small portals, thus satisfying a basic requirement of minimally invasive surgical procedures. Surgeons in the field of skull-base and spine surgery are now taking advantage of the benefits of such endoscopes. The pneumatically powered EndoArm endoscopic holder has been used extensively in both cranial and spinal neurosurgical cases at the University of Utah. These cases include minimally invasive cervical and lumbar decompression procedures, as well as more recently the resection of larger and more extensive pituitary tumors. In this paper, the multiple advantages of the Olympus EndoArm endoscopic holder are described in detail. As more surgeons gain experience with endoscopes in skull-base surgery, the hope is that operative times will be shorter and more extensive surgical resections will be possible with less patient morbidity.