Atlantic Health System’s Overlook Medical Center announced on Monday its nationally recognized neurosurgery team is the first in New Jersey to pioneer the use of a new minimally invasive option for brain surgery — the ROSA Brain robot from Indiana-based Zimmer Biomet.

The ROSA Brain is a surgical navigation and positioning system, much like a GPS, that allows for precise spatial positioning and orientation of surgical instruments and tools.

According to Overlook, conventional neurosurgery for epilepsy requires a craniotomy, which is the surgical removal of part of the bone from the skull to expose the brain, so that electrodes can be placed to detect and record seizure activity.

Using the ROSA Brain robot, surgeons make tiny holes in the skull through which they insert the electrodes. The electrodes record brain activity and help pinpoint exactly which part of the brain is responsible for seizures. The robot also can assist in deep brain stimulation, trans-nasal and ventricular endoscopy and brain biopsies.

Due to the complexity of epilepsy surgery, only the most technically skilled neurosurgeons are trained to use the ROSA Brain robot, which does not require opening the skull, or even shaving the head.

Overlook’s first surgery using the ROSA Brain robot was performed by Dr. Ronald Benitez, chief of endovascular neurosurgery Overlook Medical Center, Atlantic Health System, and neurosurgeon with Atlantic NeuroSurgical Specialists.

This technology is the latest advancement available to patients at Overlook Medical Center’s Level 4 Epilepsy Center – placing Overlook at the forefront of epilepsy care in New Jersey.

“We’re truly excited to be the first in New Jersey to use the ROSA Brain robot during brain surgery,” said Benitez. “Seizures can be a daily occurrence for epilepsy patients and approximately 30 percent of these patients don’t respond to medication. Using a tool like the ROSA robot is a far less invasive surgery and adds new surgical options that can drastically improve the quality of life for patients with seizures.”