Every mistake in neurosurgery can have serious consequences. That is why precise planning is necessary so that the surgeons know exactly what to do. To avoid damages, it is also important to visualize as accurately as possible what exactly happens at the end of the endoscope. Precise planning and perfect vision could, in addition, be complemented by a system that can autonomously recognize and protect vital tissue types such as blood vessels and nerve tracts. In this way, neurosurgery could be made even safer than it already is today. Therefore, researchers at the DBE are conducting research in all three fields – planning, visualization and tissue-detection – under the supervision of the neurosurgeon Raphael Guzman from the University Hospital of Basel.

The collaboration between the DBE and the Department of Neurosurgery at the University Hospital is a perfect example for the translational character of the research at the DBE: The clinicians of the University Hospital discuss their problems and desiderata with the researchers, who then propose initial approaches. In a circular or pendulum movement, solutions are then developed that exploit the possibilities of state-of-the-art research and at the same time provide effective help for the clinicians.