Abstract
BACKGROUND: Creating a somatotopic map of the subthalamic nucleus of a patient undergoing deep brain stimulation requires extra procedural steps, hardware, and personnel and can result in prolonged procedural time. OBJECTIVE: ClockSynch, a custom program used to collect intraoperative data, requires user input during surgery. A small touchscreen may simplify the researcher's interaction with data collection software and minimize the impact of the research protocol on overall operative time. This possibility was investigated using the multi-input multioutput (MIMO) 720S, a lightweight touchscreen. METHODS: ClockSynch is designed to be used with the MIMO 720S in touchscreen mode. During intraoperative data collection, the researcher used the MIMO to control ClockSynch without interacting with the computer running the program. RESULTS: Once correctly configured, the MIMO was used in the operating room without any incidence of failure during intraoperative data collection. It also had the advantage of being compact and lightweight enough to be placed at any location around the patient and allowed the primary researcher to interact with the research software and the patient simultaneously. CONCLUSIONS: Small, touchscreen devices such as the MIMO 720S can facilitate intraoperative research by providing a simple interface with research software that allows a single researcher to perform more duties. Such devices also minimize the impact of research protocol on operative time. Copyright © 2012 by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.