For neurosurgery, when operating on a patient with suspected prion disease, the surgery will be done with disposable instruments as much as possible. This may mean however that the surgeon will have to use a hand drill, instead of a power drill.

For the other cases without prions, normal sterilization works. And you don’t want to throw away all your equipment after each surgery. A neurosurgical power drill can cost around $20,000 - $40,000