Musician Played The Violin Mid-Brain Surgery Like Feeling No Pain

The brain surgery of Dagmar Turner is one-of-a-kind as when it happened, the patient was conscious enough to play the violin. The video recording part of the operation shows the patient artfully moved the bow as the doctors stood behind a plastic veil to remove a brain tumor.

She was awake while her brain is operated was for the doctors to ensure that they had not damaged any part responsible for playing the violin.

According to Keyoumars Ashkan, a neurosurgeon, the doctors knew well how important it was for Dagmar to be able to play the violin, so they tried their best to preserve the brain parts needed for her to play like normal.

Back in 2013, 50-year-old Turner found out that she had a tumor and a few years later, doctors said that it had become dangerous so an operation was required. Since the tumor is on the right of her brain, it would affect the left side. However, since she is a violinist, that kind of effect is unacceptable in her profession.

Keyoumars Ashkan is also a pianist, worked with his colleges to find a way to keep the functions of Turner’s hands intact.

Before the operation, the doctors spent two hours mapping Turner’s brain to find out which parts are active when she plays and which are responsible for movements and language. So waking her up mid-surgery was important to make sure that these vital parts did suffer any damage.

Turner said that it was her passion to play the violin. She has been playing since she was 10 and it broke her heart thinking that she could no longer play after the surgery. Dr. Ashkan understood her concern.

With the effort of doctors, 90% of the tumor was removed successfully while retaining the full function of her left hand.

This is not the first time a patient played an instrument while being operated. In 2016, the scenarios played out when a music teacher played the saxophone while doctors worked to remove a tumor.

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