Stereotactic Neurosurgery

The Duke University Medical Center Library Stereotactic Museum was established to preserve the stereotactic instruments that significantly impacted the field of neurosurgery. The collection is largely due to the generosity of Drs. Robert Heimberger, Hirotaro Narabayashi, George Austin, Sheng-Ling Wu, Robert Rand, and Robert Iacono, who donated their instruments. Eric Cosman, Professor Physics, MIT, donated an early Radionics radiofrequency (RF) lesion maker.

The museum was dedicated on September 24, 2003. Dr. Philip Gildenberg, Clinical Professor of Neurosurgery and Radiation Oncology, Baylor College of Medicine (Houston), presented a fascinating lecture at the dedication on "The Birth of Human Stereotactic Surgery."

The museum would not have been possible without the support and enthusiasm of Patricia Thibodeau, Associate Dean of the Medical Center Library and Archives, and Suzanne Porter, Curator of the History of Medicine Collections. The Mary Duke Biddle Foundation, The Josiah Charles Trent Memorial Foundation, and Mr. and Mrs. Larry Flynt gave much appreciated initial financial support to establish the museum.

The collection is now in storage with select items on display in the Richmond House Room, Level 1, Medical Center Library.