Vectorial Templates for Stereotactic Functional Surgery
The use of scalable templates representing the basal ganglia, as an aid in electrophysiological mapping, is a common practice among stereotactic functional neurosurgeons. The authors describe the procedure to create vectorial templates, based on the Atlas For Stereotaxy of the Human Brain by Schaltenbrand and Wahren, using inexpensive commercially available vectorial software.

Most neurosurgery departments involved in stereotactic functional surgery have computer aids either for presurgical planning, electrode guidance, or both. The use of printed templates, however, is not out of date because of the supplementary role that this medium offers. First, it provides an additional element of safety for the calculation of coordinates. Second, it allows documentation of the neurological phenomena that occur along each track, and it permits instant visual comparisons between tracks. Additionally it is a printed document that remains in the clinical file for future reference.

In centers with no specific software, the use of self-created templates adaptable to the intercommissural distance in each patient is sufficient for the mapping process. This method, affordable to any personal computer user, can be a substitute for more expensive software.