By the end of this symposium and workshop, participants will be able to:

1. Explain the physical principles and technical fundamentals of MR-guided focused ultrasound (MRgFUS), including the differences between high-intensity (HIFU) and low-intensity (LIFU) focused ultrasound

2. Describe the evolution of psychosurgery and evaluate what its history teaches us about the safe, ethical, and evidence-based use of lesioning procedures today

3. Identify current and emerging indications for MRgFUS in psychiatric disorders, including drug-resistant obsessive-compulsive disorder and addiction

4. Select appropriate candidates for MRgFUS treatment of movement disorders, particularly essential tremor and Parkinson’s disease, based on established indications

5. Understand the key procedural steps of MRgFUS capsulotomy and VIM thalamotomy through live treatment demonstrations, from targeting to intraoperative monitoring

6. Recognize the techniques, clinical outcomes, and potential adverse effects of HIFU lesioning, and apply strategies to minimize and manage complications

7. Discuss the expanding applications of focused ultrasound across different brain circuits and beyond currently established indications

8. Appraise the emerging role of LIFU for non-invasive neuromodulation and blood–brain barrier opening, and distinguish investigational approaches from established clinical practice

9. Integrate a circuit-based perspective, from targets to circuits and from lesioning to neuromodulation, into future clinical and research decision-making in functional neurosurgery