For immediate release – Feb. 15, 2008
Contact: Dan Branyon, 864-725-4134
dbranyon@selfregional.org

 

Local neurosurgeon’s invention earns international award

         GREENWOOD—A neurosurgeon at Self Regional Healthcare has captured a top award in an international technology invention contest for his work on an improved brain mapping technique that allows surgeons to more accurately keep track of their location during an operation.
            Dr. Sumeer Lal of Carolina Neurosurgery and Spine Center, a Greenwood resident since 2004, won first place in the medical division of Create the Future Contest. His entry was one of approximately 1,000 high-tech inventions from individuals and institutions surveyed by a panel of judges comprised of 40 engineers. Dr. Lal’s entry was selected based on its ability to improve the efficiency and quality of health care, as well as its innovation, manufacturability, marketability and cost-effectiveness.
            Dr. Lal won the award along with co-inventor Ajay M. Mahajan, professor of mechanical engineering and energy processes in the college of engineering at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Ill.
            Similar to a Global Positioning System (GPS), the invention under development could assist surgeons navigate through the brain to find and remove anything from tumors to bullets easily, cheaply and in a non-invasive manner where virtually no cutting is necessary. The system can help neurosurgeons determine the location of their surgical instruments down to 1 millimeter in accuracy.
            “This system uses sensors on the surgeon’s probe that transmit ultrasonic signals to an array of receivers, which can pinpoint in real time precisely where the probe is in relation to the patient’s brain,” Dr. Lal said. “Physicians and engineers have assessed our technology and find it definitely has benefits.”
            The new technology is designed to enhance existing brain surgery systems which rely on stereotactic cameras and electronics to help guide the surgeon’s actions, according to Dr. Lal. Such systems cost as much as $750,000 and can fail at critical moments if a member of the surgery team accidentally blocks the vision-based system or bumps it.
            The invention by Dr. Lal and Mahajan costs roughly 10 percent as much as existing systems and is much less fragile. It may prove to be a viable alternative to current systems. Work is also under way to interface the new technology with existing systems to improve their reliability and accuracy.
            Create the Future Contest strives to reward the best ideas for new products and celebrate breakthrough thinking that solves a variety of problems. Among the sponsors of the contest are ABP International, the publisher of NASA Tech Briefs Magazine, and SolidWorks Corp., a leading 3-D computer-aided design software company.
            Dr. Lal and Mahajan are invited to attend an awards ceremony this April in New York. The new technology will be featured in a segment scheduled to air on The Discovery Channel and NASA Tech Briefs will report on it in a feature article in the magazine’s April issue.
            A native of Canada, Dr. Lal joined Carolina Neurosurgery and Spine Center after practicing in Illinois. He is certified by the American Board of Neurological Surgeons and is a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. He and his wife, Megha, are parents to two children.
            Dr. Lal and Dr. Michael Kilburn, his partner at Carolina Neurosurgery and Spine Center, are ranked number one in South Carolina and also received a five-star rating for spine surgery in the national 2008 HealthGrades report.