Leeds surgery reaches brain via eye socket in UK-first procedure

A grandfather avoided major brain surgery after experts performed an operation, believed to be a UK-first, which reached his brain through his eye socket. Andrew Wood, 61, said he was "shocked" to learn he had a potentially life-threatening bulge in a blood vessel, which was discovered during scans for a separate medical issue. Such cases are usually treated by removing part of the skull and moving sections of the brain to access the problem. Consultant neurosurgeon Asim Sheikh said operating through the eye socket allowed direct access. "This meant we could get to the aneurysm without even having to touch the brain," he said. The procedure, performed by specialists at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, built on earlier work by the same team, who removed a brain tumour via the eye socket in 2024. Surgeons made a small incision at the side of Wood's eye and an opening in the outer wall of the socket, which allowed them to place a metal clip across the aneurysm to prevent it from rupturing. Wood, from Wakefield, spent just one night in hospital, compared with around a week for conventional surgery, and returned to his job as a builder within weeks. "I didn't have any symptoms whatso