How to Use a High-Speed Drill and an Ultrasonic Aspirator During Skull Base Surgery

Abstract

During surgery for skull base lesions, maximum efforts should be made to improve the removal rate of the lesion while avoiding complications, and it is necessary to expand the surgical field by selecting appropriate surgical instruments and equipment. In both microsurgery and endoscopic surgery, high-speed drills and ultrasonic aspirators contribute significantly to the safe and reliable removal of skull base lesions, and the surgeons need to be familiar with these characteristics. The specific vital points are as follows: (1) Preparation of the appropriate environment for using a high-speed drill or an ultrasonic aspirator with the understanding of the microsurgical anatomy, (2) Bone excision using a high-speed drill with the selection of an appropriate drill attachment or drill bar tip according to the site of use, (3) Internal decompression of lesions using an ultrasonic aspirator with appropriate settings, (4) Additional expansion of the surgical field by using an ultrasonic aspirator in the osteotomy mode, and so on. This section describes details of how to use a high-speed drill and an ultrasonic aspirator during skull base surgery.