During the past decade, navigational devices have provided an unprecedented degree of surgical guidance during neurosurgical procedures. The development of image-guided neurosurgery represents a substantial improvement in the microsurgical treatment of tumours, vascular malformations, and other intracerebral lesions. It allows a greater accuracy in the localization of the lesion, a more accurate determination of its margins, and a safer surgical removal, avoiding injury to the surrounding brain tissue.

Magnetic resonance imaging has many significant advantages such as multi-parameter imaging, arbitrary orientation scanning, high spatial resolution, good soft tissue contrast, no bone density artifacts, and no radiation damage. Compared with ultrasound, X-ray , CT and other image guidance technologies, MRI guidance is more and more recognized by users and academics.