Leeds surgery reaches the brain via the eye socket for the first time in the UK
Surgeons at Leeds Teaching Hospital treated a brain aneurysm with a pinoeering surgical procedure.
Recently, Leeds became the first city in the UK to undergo a pioneering surgical procedure in neurosurgery, with surgeons successfully treating a brain aneurysm . The operation took place at the Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust.
As reported by the NHS, Sixty-year-old Andrew Wood from Wakefield was diagnosed with a brain aneurysm from an MRI scan last year in 2025. If the brain aneurysm has an increase in weakness in the vessel wall, creating balloon-like bulges, it can rupture and cause life-threatening bleeding. Previously, surgeons would need to perform a craniotomy, where part of the skull must be removed to reach the swollen vessel.
However, this surgical team operated using a trans-orbital keyhole approach, where surgeons made a small incision into the side of Andrew Wood’s eye socket to reach the aneurysm, which permitted them to easily place a metal clip across the aneurysm to prevent rupturing without needing to remove part of his skull or move any part of the brain. After the surgery, it was concluded that this would have decreased Wood’s pain and recovery time better than if they had performed a conventional craniotomy surgery. Wood’s recovery was quick, spending only one night in hospital rather than a whole week.
As reported by the National Health Executive, to prepare for Wood’s operation, neurosurgeons Asmin Sheikh and Kenan Deniz said that there was an advanced digital plan of a custom-made 3D printed model of Wood’s eye socket, skull base, and aneurysm, used to prepare for the health and safety of the operation.
One Medical student at the University of Leeds said:
“This method can be used to amplify and make it more recognizable within surgical practices, so this new technique can be safely adopted into surgical practices.”
This operation is a step forward for research and neurosurgery, building on the Leeds Surgery Team’s breakthrough to help change the lives of others who suffer from complex brain conditions.