MRI-Guided Laser Interstitial Thermal Therapy (LITT)
A minimally invasive procedure that ablates a precise volume of tissue with a laser fibre, guided in real time by MRI thermometry. Used for epilepsy foci (e.g. mesial temporal sclerosis) and some brain tumours.
Benefits
Minimally invasive alternative to open resection, real-time MRI temperature control, shorter recovery, access to deep targets.
Risks
Thermal injury to adjacent structures, visual-field deficits (near optic pathways), incomplete ablation, and standard neurosurgical risks.
Informational only — not medical advice.
Research (8)
- Laser interstitial thermal therapy for recurrent brain metastases following stereotactic radiosurgery: a systematic review Almeida et al. (2025) PubMed ↗
- MR-guided laser interstitial thermal therapy in the treatment of brain tumors and epilepsy Nielsen et al. (2024) PubMed ↗
- Laser Interstitial Thermal Therapy for Radionecrosis Bozinov et al. (2023) PubMed ↗
- Laser Interstitial Thermal Therapy for the Treatment of Primary and Metastatic Brain Tumors: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Alkazemi et al. (2023) PubMed ↗
- Role of Laser Interstitial Thermal Therapy in the Management of Primary and Metastatic Brain Tumors Melnick et al. (2021) PubMed ↗
- Laser Interstitial Thermal Therapy in the treatment of brain metastases and radiation necrosis Li et al. (2020) PubMed ↗
- Laser interstitial thermal therapy in gliomas Yang et al. (2020) PubMed ↗
- Magnetic Resonance Thermometry and Laser Interstitial Thermal Therapy for Brain Tumors Silva et al. (2017) PubMed ↗
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