MKS,
I do not have any knowledge of the reputation of Baptist as it relates to CK, but I believe they are one of the newer CK installations. Some of the Docs on the CPSG board are probably very familiar with the physicians there and might offer an opinion.
That being said, there are a couple of issues that are more important than how long they have had a CK. The CK is simply a newer generation machine, but if Baptist has had a gamma knife or equivalent machine for a number of years then I would guess they are very experienced in radiosurgery of AN's and the CK is just a better tool. additionally, radiosurgery is very computerized relative to surgery which eliminates a lot of potential error. Treatment planning is done by a computer with input and review by a team of people which includes a neurosurgeon, radiation oncologist and physicist. This makes the variance in quality between facilities less of an issue. Surgery on the other hand is a very human endeavor. The experience and skill of each surgeon is widely differnt and requires good research in finding the best AN practioners. That being said, the variables for the surgeon on the day of the procedure are more unpredictable. Do they lose proficiency when the surgery goes from 6-8 -10 hours long? Even the best surgeons will get tired. Did they have a fight with their spouse that morning or get some bad news? Nobody ever talks about that aspect, but surgeons are people and they deal with all the same day to day issues the rest of us do. Point being that the nature of radiosurgery eliminates many variables through it's computerization and team review which reduces the differences between facilities regardless how long they had a particular piece of equipment. Specific to CK , I do know that all new docs train with CK at places like Barrows and Stanford before their units are installed and there is a very collaborative network of shared knowledge through the CK society.
Mark
