Animating External Magnetic Guidance of Intrathecally Delivered Gold-Coated Nanoparticles to Treat Intramedullary Spinal Tumors

Intramedullary spinal cord tumors (IMSCTs) are rare neoplasms in the central nervous system (CNS), accounting for 2-4% of all CNS tumors.1 Astrocytomas, a common type of IMSCT, are infiltrative and do not have a clear plane of dissection making surgical removal difficult. Due to limitations in current surgical options, along with adverse effects of chemotherapy and radiotherapy, the use of external magnets to guide intrathecally delivered gold-coated nanoparticles has been proposed as a less invasive treatment for eliminating astrocytomas.1,2 An animation was developed to create a new resource providing an overview of the procedure and to teach grant committees, surgical residents, and surgical faculty. A qualitative survey was administered to provide residents, faculty, and researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) Neurosurgery and Neurology Departments an opportunity to provide comments. Likert scale questions and qualitative comments confirmed that the animation was effective in accurately portraying the technique and is a valuable visual aid for neurosurgeons. This new resource will continue to help introduce and explain the procedure for anticipated upcoming clinical trials.