Sara Thalheimer
Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, Thomas Jefferson University
Papers
4
Total Citations
109
H-Index
3
About
Sara Thalheimer is a rising force in the field of stereotactic and functional neurosurgery, with a research focus on optimizing surgical precision and cost-effectiveness in neuromodulation. Her landmark meta-analysis, "Robot-Assisted Stereotaxy Reduces Target Error," synthesized data from over 6,000 trajectories, demonstrating that robotic assistance significantly reduces target error in deep brain stimulation (DBS) and stereoelectroencephalography (sEEG)—a finding that has shaped modern stereotactic practice and earned over 60 citations. Thalheimer also pioneered the use of probabilistic tractography to reliably distinguish motor and sensory thalamic nuclei during asleep DBS, enabling more accurate electrode placement for essential tremor patients. Demonstrating a keen interest in healthcare economics, she applied time-driven activity-based costing to compare the marginal intraoperative costs of robot-assisted, navigation-guided, and freehand pedicle screw placement in transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion, providing actionable insights for resource allocation. Her work bridges technical innovation with practical implementation, making her a key contributor to the evolution of precision neurosurgery.
Research Focus
Key Achievements
Top Papers
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