Application of intraoperative infrared thermography in bypass surgery for adult moyamoya syndrome: A preliminary study

Jinghui Lin; Yiwen Wu; Xinpeng Deng; Shengjun Zhou; Yuchun Liu; Junjun Zhang; Yiyong Zeng; Xianru Li; Xiang Gao; Bin Xu; Chenhui Zhou

doi:10.3389/fneur.2023.1174072

Application of intraoperative infrared thermography in bypass surgery for adult moyamoya syndrome: A preliminary study

Front Neurol. 2023 Mar 30:14:1174072. doi: 10.3389/fneur.2023.1174072. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Jinghui Lin¹, Yiwen Wu¹, Xinpeng Deng¹, Shengjun Zhou¹, Yuchun Liu¹, Junjun Zhang¹, Yiyong Zeng¹, Xianru Li¹, Xiang Gao¹, Bin Xu², Chenhui Zhou¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Neurosurgery, Ningbo First Hospital, Ningbo University, Ningbo, Zhejiang, China.
² Department of Neurosurgery, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.

Abstract

Background and objectives: Cerebral revascularization surgery is the mainstay of treatment for moyamoya syndrome (MMS) today, and intraoperative determination of the patency of the revascularized vessel is a critical factor in the success of the procedure. Currently, major imaging modalities include intraoperative indocyanine green (ICG) videoangiography (ICG-VA), digital subtraction angiography (DSA), and vascular ultrasound Doppler. Infrared thermography is a modern imaging modality with non-contact devices for the acquisition and analysis of thermal data. We aimed to investigate the feasibility and advantages of infrared thermography in determining anastomotic patency during MMS surgery.

Methods: Indocyanine green videoangiography and infrared thermography were performed simultaneously in 21 patients with MMS who underwent bypass surgery. The detection result of vessel patency was compared, and the feasibility and advantages of infrared thermography were assessed.

Results: The patency of the anastomosis was accurately determined in 21 patients using either ICG angiography or infrared thermography. In 20 patients, the results of infrared thermography showed that the vascular anastomosis was unobstructed, and there was an agreement with the subsequent results of ICG-VA. In one patient, we suspected inadequate patency after testing the anastomosis with infrared thermography, and the results of ICG-VA evaluation of the anastomosis confirmed that there was indeed an anastomotic obstruction.

Conclusion: Compared with ICG-VA, infrared thermography might offer an alternative non-invasive, contrast-free option in assessing anastomosis patency compared with ICG-VA, and it is likely to become more widely used in the clinic in the near future.

Keywords: cerebral revascularization; indocyanine green fluorescein videoangiography; infrared thermography; moyamoya disease; moyamoya syndrome.