Emerging technology in intracranial neuroendoscopy: application of the NICO Myriad

Improvement in fiber optics and imaging paved the way for tremendous advancements in neuroendoscopy. These advancements have led to increasingly widespread use of the endoscope in neurosurgical procedures, which in turn incited a technological revolution leading to new approaches, instruments, techniques, and a diverse armamentarium for the treatment of a variety of neurosurgical disorders. Soft-tissue removal is often a rate-limiting aspect to endoscopic procedures, especially when the soft tissue is dense or fibrous. The authors review a series of cases involving patients treated between August 2009 and October 2010 with a new device (the NICO Myriad), a non-heat-generating, oscillating, cutting, and tissue removal instrument that can be used through the working channel of the endoscope as well as in open neurosurgical procedures. They used this device in 14 purely endoscopic intracranial procedures and 1 endoscope-assisted keyhole craniotomy. They report that the device was easy to use and found that tissue resection was more efficient than with other available endoscopic instruments, especially in the resection of fibrotic tissue. There were no observed device-related complications. The authors discuss the technical aspects of using this device in endoscopic resection of pituitary tumors, craniopharyngiomas, and colloid cysts. They also demonstrate its use in hydrocephalus and intraventricular clot removal and discuss its potential use in other neurosurgical disorders. (DOI: 10.3171/2011.2.FOCUS10312)