Facial Nerve Tractography of Vestibular Schwannomas: A Systematic Review of MR Acquisition and Analysis Pipelines

The authors aim to evaluate the reliability of facial nerve diffusion MR tractography in pre-operative planning for vestibular schwannoma resection, particularly questioning the high success rates reported in previous studies. Through a systematic review of 22 studies, they found significant variability in tractography methodologies, suggesting that the true effectiveness of this technique may be overestimated. They advocate for standardized reporting metrics to enhance transparency and reliability in future research.