Surgery without scalpels
How a new ultrasound treatment allows surgery without scalpels for those suffering from an “essential tremor”.
Life for 58-year-old Crista Berry, along with 10 million other Americans who suffer from a neurological condition known as an essential tremor, is difficult.
The condition causes involuntary muscle movements which affect everyday activities such as writing, eating and driving. Berry, who is better known to her friends and family as “Sunny”, used to enjoy painting and drawing before her condition deteriorated.
Scientists at the Ohio State University’s Wexner Medical Center Hospital have developed a completely non-invasive technique that can cure essential tremors that people like Berry suffer from.
Neurosurgeon Dr Vibhor Krishna says the main advantage of the focused ultrasound treatment is that it’s non-invasive. So, without opening the skull, and while the patients are awake and writing, he can look at their specific tremor and see the progress being made during the procedure.
Join Dr Elizabeth Healey in Ohio to witness Sunny’s dramatic transformation following her surgery without scalpels.