Awake craniotomy for brain tumors during pregnancy: An updated scoping review.

Overview

Authors: Ashutosh Kaushal¹, Vaishali Waindeskar¹, Sri Rama Ananta Nagabhushanam Padala¹, Sandeep Kumar¹, Isha Jain², Amit Agrawal²

Department of Anaesthesiology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, India
Department of Neurosurgery, All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, India

Institutions: All India Institute of Medical Sciences Bhopal (India)

Journal: Journal of anaesthesiology, clinical pharmacology, volume 42, issue 3, pages 350-357

Dates: received 5 December 2025; accepted 19 February 2026; published online 19 May 2026; in print July 2026

Type: Review · Language: English

License: CC BY-NC-SA

Identifiers: DOI 10.4103/joacp.joacp_734_25 · PMID 42541244 · PMCID PMC13427302 · OpenAlex W7161628882

Open access: diamond, a free copy (OpenAlex)

Status: code on request

Categories: human (organism), other condition (population), clinical / translational (subfield)

Keywords: Awake craniotomy, brain tumor, maternal-fetal outcomes, neurosurgery, pregnancy

Topic: Anesthesia and Neurotoxicity Research (Developmental Neuroscience, Neuroscience), according to OpenAlex

Citations: not cited yet (Europe PMC); 24 references in the paper

Abstract

The management of brain tumors during pregnancy presents a complex clinical challenge, balancing maternal neurological needs with fetal safety. Awake craniotomy (AC) is a potential strategy to maximize tumor resection in eloquent areas while minimizing fetal anesthetic exposure, but the literature remains sparse. The objective of this review is to summarize the current evidence regarding the use of AC for brain tumors during pregnancy. Following PRISMA guidelines, a systematic search was conducted in PubMed, Scopus, Cochrane Library, and ScienceDirect databases for studies reporting on AC in pregnant patients. Data on clinical characteristics, anesthetic techniques, and maternal/fetal outcomes were extracted. Methodological quality was assessed using the Joanna Briggs Institute checklist for case reports. Eleven studies, comprising 11 patients, met the inclusion criteria. All were case reports or a small case series. AC was performed across all trimesters for various tumors, predominantly gliomas. Anesthetic techniques included both “awake throughout” and “asleep-awake-asleep” approaches, with dexmedetomidine and propofol being common agents. All cases reported successful surgical resections with positive fetal outcomes, resulting in the delivery of healthy infants. Short-term maternal neurological outcomes were generally favorable; however, long-term maternal prognosis was variable and dependent on the underlying tumor pathology. A multidisciplinary approach was highlighted as crucial for success. The available evidence, though limited to case reports, suggests that AC is a viable, effective option for carefully selected pregnant patients with brain tumors. However, the high potential for publication bias warrants caution, and larger, prospective studies are needed to establish definitive guidelines.

Reproduced under the paper's license (CC BY-NC-SA), from the paper cited above.

Code

The paper says that its authors' code is available on request: it was not published with the paper, so there is nothing to verify.

Tracing map

A tracing map links a paper to the code its authors published: this paper has none (its code is available on request), so it has no map.

Data

No dataset and no data link were found in the paper.

Versions

The history of this record: each version stored by the harvester or made by a correction of its authors or of the maintainers of its code, and what changed in its facts. The texts of the paper (its abstract, its availability statements) are not part of it; versions that changed only those are not listed.

Version 1, 28 September 2026: the first record

Recorded: type, language, journal, volume, issue, pages, dates, 6 authors, 5 keywords, 20 references.

Cite

This paper

Kaushal, A., Waindeskar, V., Padala, S. R. A. N., Kumar, S., Jain, I., & Agrawal, A. (2026). Awake craniotomy for brain tumors during pregnancy: An updated scoping review. Journal of anaesthesiology, clinical pharmacology, 42(3), 350-357. https://doi.org/10.4103/joacp.joacp_734_25

BibTeX

@article{kaushal2026awake, author = {Kaushal, Ashutosh and Waindeskar, Vaishali and Padala, Sri Rama Ananta Nagabhushanam and Kumar, Sandeep and Jain, Isha and Agrawal, Amit}, title = {{Awake craniotomy for brain tumors during pregnancy: An updated scoping review}}, journal = {Journal of anaesthesiology, clinical pharmacology}, year = {2026}, month = may, volume = {42}, number = {3}, pages = {350--357}, publisher = {Wolters Kluwer -- Medknow Publications}, issn = {0970-9185}, doi = {10.4103/joacp.joacp_734_25}, url = {https://doi.org/10.4103/joacp.joacp_734_25}, pmid = {42541244}, pmcid = {PMC13427302} }

RIS

TY - JOUR AU - Kaushal, Ashutosh AU - Waindeskar, Vaishali AU - Padala, Sri Rama Ananta Nagabhushanam AU - Kumar, Sandeep AU - Jain, Isha AU - Agrawal, Amit TI - Awake craniotomy for brain tumors during pregnancy: An updated scoping review T2 - Journal of anaesthesiology, clinical pharmacology J2 - J Anaesthesiol Clin Pharmacol PY - 2026 DA - 2026/05/19 VL - 42 IS - 3 SP - 350 EP - 357 SN - 0970-9185 PB - Wolters Kluwer -- Medknow Publications DO - 10.4103/joacp.joacp_734_25 UR - https://doi.org/10.4103/joacp.joacp_734_25 LA - en ER -

CSL-JSON

{ "id": "10.4103/joacp.joacp_734_25", "type": "article-journal", "title": "Awake craniotomy for brain tumors during pregnancy: An updated scoping review", "container-title": "Journal of anaesthesiology, clinical pharmacology", "author": [ { "family": "Kaushal", "given": "Ashutosh" }, { "family": "Waindeskar", "given": "Vaishali" }, { "family": "Padala", "given": "Sri Rama Ananta Nagabhushanam" }, { "family": "Kumar", "given": "Sandeep" }, { "family": "Jain", "given": "Isha" }, { "family": "Agrawal", "given": "Amit" } ], "container-title-short": "J Anaesthesiol Clin Pharmacol", "volume": "42", "issue": "3", "page": "350-357", "DOI": "10.4103/joacp.joacp_734_25", "PMID": "42541244", "PMCID": "PMC13427302", "ISSN": "0970-9185", "publisher": "Wolters Kluwer -- Medknow Publications", "URL": "https://doi.org/10.4103/joacp.joacp_734_25", "language": "en", "issued": { "date-parts": [ [ 2026, 5, 19 ] ] } }

Contribute

The authors of this paper can claim it, correct its record and validate its tracing map, and the maintainers of its code (its owner, or a public member of its organization) correct what it says of their repository; anyone signed in can ask for its removal. Every request goes to OSCR's own machine, which answers it; your account page follows them.

Sign in with ORCID to claim this paper as one of its authors, correct its record or validate its tracing map: when the paper's metadata lists your ORCID iD, you are recognized at once. Maintainers of its code: sign in with GitHub, then claim the repository on your account page.

Request its removal

To ask OSCR to remove this record, the copies of its authors' scripts or its tracing map, use the removal request page: signed in, you say who you are, what to remove and why, then review and confirm the request. Published rules decide every request (how).

Discussion, reproductions, activity

Discussion: questions and error reports about this paper and its code, from signed-in readers and its authors. It opens with sign-in.

Reproductions: reports from readers who ran the authors' code: what they reproduced, with which environment, commit and data. It opens with sign-in.

Activity: what happens around this paper: new versions of its record, its map's validation, discussions and reproductions. It opens with sign-in.