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Craniotomy and Craniectomy - Medical Animation

 

This animation may only be used in support of a single legal proceeding and for no other purpose. Read our License Agreement for details. To license this image for other purposes, click here.

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Craniotomy and Craniectomy - Medical Animation
MEDICAL ANIMATION TRANSCRIPT: Your doctor may recommend a craniotomy or craniectomy procedure to treat a number of different brain diseases, injuries, or conditions. Your skull is made of bone, and serves as a hard, protective covering for your brain. Just inside your skull, three layers of tissue called meninges surround your brain. The thick, outermost layer is the dura mater. The middle tissue layer is the arachnoid mater, and the innermost layer is the pia mater. Between the arachnoid mater and the pia mater is the subarachnoid space, which contains blood vessels and a clear fluid called cerebrospinal fluid. Blood vessels, called bridging veins, connect the surface of your brain with the dura mater. Other blood vessels, called cerebral arteries, bring blood to your brain. Inside your skull, normal brain function requires a delicate balance of pressure between the blood in your blood vessels, the cerebrospinal fluid that surrounds your brain, and your brain tissue. This is called normal intracranial pressure. Increased intracranial pressure may result from brain tumors, head injuries, problems with your blood vessels, or infections in your brain or spinal cord. These conditions put pressure on your brain, and may cause it to swell or change shape inside your skull, which can lead to serious brain injury. Your doctor may recommend a craniotomy to remove abnormal brain tissue such as a brain tumor, a sample of tissue by biopsy, a blood clot called a hematoma, excess cerebrospinal fluid, or pus from an infection called an abscess. A craniotomy may also be done to relieve brain swelling; stop bleeding, called a hemorrhage; repair abnormal blood vessels; repair skull fractures; or repair damaged meninges. Finally, a craniotomy may also be done to treat brain conditions such as epilepsy, deliver medication to your brain, or implant a medical device such as a deep brain stimulator. The most common reason for a craniotomy is to remove a brain tumor. Before your procedure, you will be given general anesthesia to make you unconscious and pain-free. The skin on your scalp will be shaved over the location of the tumor. To begin, your surgeon will make an incision in your scalp. One or more small holes will be made in your skull. Then, your surgeon will connect the holes to create a circular piece of bone called a bone flap, and remove it. Your surgeon will make an incision in the dura mater to expose your brain. Then your tumor will be removed. The incision in the dura mater will be closed with sutures. Your surgeon will reattach the bone flap with metal plates and screws that will remain in your skull for life. You may have a variation on a craniotomy called a craniectomy, if your brain is very swollen or your skull is infected. Your surgeon may delay reattaching the bone flap until a later procedure, to allow time for the swelling to go down. At the end of either a craniotomy or a craniectomy, your scalp incision will be closed with staples, and your head will be wrapped in bandages. If you had a craniectomy, you will have another procedure called a cranioplasty at a later date, after the swelling goes down. At that time, your surgeon will reattach your bone flap with metal plates and screws, then close the skin incision with staples. After either procedure, you will stay in the hospital for several days. Your caregiver will check your brain function by asking you questions, and shining a light in your eyes. You may be given medication to prevent complications.

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What attorneys say about MLA and The Doe Report:
"I wanted to take some time out to let you know what a wonderful job you did with the 'collapsed lung/fractured rib' illustrations. They were both detailed and accurate. My medical expert was comfortable working with them and he spent at least an hour explaining to the jury the anatomy of the lungs, the ribs and the injuries depicted in the illustrations. Needless to say, the jury was riveted to the doctor during his testimony.

The jury returned a verdict for $800,000.00 and I'm sure we would not have done so well if not for the visualizations we were able to put forth with your assistance. Lastly, my special thanks to Alice [Senior Medical Illustrator] who stayed late on Friday night and patiently dealt with my last minute revisions."

Daniel J. Costello
Proner & Proner
New York, NY

"Thank you for the splendid medical-legal art work you did for us in the case of a young girl who was blinded by a bb pellet. As a result of your graphic illustrations of this tragic injury, we were able to persuade the insurance company to increase their initial offer of $75,000.00 to $475,000.00, just short of their policy limits.

We simply wanted you to know how pleased we were with your work which, to repeat, was of superlative character, and to let you know that we would be more than willing to serve as a reference in case you ever need one. Many thanks for an extraordinary and dramatic depiction of a very serious injury which clearly "catapulted" the insurance company's offer to a "full and fair" amount to settle this case."

Philip C. Coulter
Coulter &Coulter
Roanoke, VA

"There is nothing like a great graphic depicting the real nature and extent of a victim's injuries to get full value for your client. I use Medical Legal Art for mediations as well as trial."

Geoff Wells
Greene, Broillet, Panish & Wheeler
Santa Monica, CA

"It is with great enthusiasm that I recommend Medical Legal Art. We have used their services for three years and always found their professionalism, quality of work, and timely attention to detail to exceed our expectations. We recently settled two complicated catastrophic injury cases. One medical malpractice case involving a spinal abscess settled for 3.75 million and the other involving injuries related to a motor vehicle accident settled for 6.9 million. We consider the artwork provided by MLA to have been invaluable in helping us to successfully conclude these cases.

I highly recommend MLA to anyone seeking high quality, detailed medical legal artwork."

E. Marcus Davis, Esq.
Davis Zipperman, Krischenbaum & Lotito
Atlanta, GA
www.emarcusdavis.com













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