Neurosurgery Expertise

We offer a full range of treatments for cancerous and noncancerous brain and skull-base tumors, stroke and other blood vessel conditions, headache, migraine and facial pain and back and spine disorders. Your doctor will explain all your treatment options to ensure you have the information you need to make informed choices about treatment. Together, you and your care team will decide which therapies are right for you.

The neurosurgical team provides a full range of therapies to give you the best possible results.

Cancerous & Noncancerous Tumor Treatments

We offer a personalized treatment plan based on your individual needs. For cancerous tumors, your treatment may include one or more cancer-fighting approaches, such as chemotherapy, radiation therapy or surgery — including minimally invasive and robotic-assisted procedures.

Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS)

Deep brain stimulation uses implanted electrodes to stimulate areas of the brain involved in seizures and movement disorders — such as Parkinson’s disease and essential tremor — by interrupting irregular signals in the brain that cause uncontrolled movements.

Your neurosurgeon places wires (leads) in areas of the brain that control unwanted movements. The leads are connected to a small device implanted under the skin of your collarbone, similar to a pacemaker. The device is programmed to deliver electrical impulses to your brain to stop unwanted movements and improve your symptoms.

Endoscopic Surgery

Endoscopic surgery uses a thin tube (endoscope) inserted into an existing opening, such as your sinuses, to treat conditions that affect your brain, skull base or the top of your spine. We also use this technique to take a sample of a tumor for diagnosis (biopsy), remove a tumor, or treat a nerve or spinal disk problem.

Endovascular Neurosurgery

Endovascular neurosurgery is a minimally invasive approach that uses advanced imaging and thin, flexible tubes (catheters) to treat cerebrovascular diseases that affect blood flow to your brain, such as stroke, arteriovenous malformations (AVMs), arteriovenous fistulas, vascular dementia, carotid artery disease, and cerebral aneurysm or hemorrhage. We use endovascular neurosurgery to restore blood flow that’s blocked, divert blood flow away from a damaged area, or stop bleeding in the brain.

Surgeons perform a variety of advanced treatments using catheters:

Carotid angioplasty – Inserts a tiny inflatable balloon into a blocked carotid artery to widen the area and restore blood flow to the brain. Sometimes surgeons use a metal coil (stent) to hold the artery open. Carotid angioplasty can help prevent and treat strokes.
Catheter embolization – Uses a coil or other device to reroute or stop blood flow to a ruptured or weakened area of a blood vessel (aneurysm). It’s also used to cut off blood supply to a tumor to stop its growth or to reroute blood flow around an arteriovenous fistula.
Microsurgery – Uses a high-powered microscope to perform blood vessel surgery.
Thrombolysis – Delivers medicine to dissolve a blood clot or uses tiny instruments to remove the clot.

We also use endovascular neurosurgery to treat stroke — when every second counts. Surgeons use it to:

Deliver clot-dissolving medicine or clot-removal devices directly to a blood clot to restore blood flow to the brain as quickly as possible.
Place a stent in the previously blocked area to hold the blood vessel open.

Headache, Migraine & Facial Pain Procedures

If medicine and lifestyle changes aren’t enough to relieve migraine or facial nerve pain, we offer minimally invasive approaches to treat pain and symptoms:

Idiopathic intracranial hypertension treatments – Procedures that release excess cerebrospinal fluid buildup pressure inside your skull. Optic nerve sheath fenestration involves a small cut in your optic nerve membrane to drain fluid. Spinal fluid shunt surgery uses a long, thin tube (shunt) inserted into your lower spine or brain to release excess fluid.
Trigeminal neuralgia procedures – Approaches that focus on the trigeminal nerve root. Microvascular decompression removes or moves blood vessels touching the trigeminal nerve root and places cushioning between the nerve and nearby blood vessels. An alternative, nonsurgical approach uses radiosurgery to damage the trigeminal nerve root and stop pain signals.

Minimally Invasive Surgery

Minimally invasive procedures use small incisions, advanced imaging equipment, and tiny instruments. Smaller incisions mean less pain and blood loss, a shorter hospital stay, and a faster recovery. We use minimally invasive surgery for a variety of conditions — from repairing blood vessels to treating spine conditions and more. Endovascular neurosurgery and robotic-assisted surgery are types of minimally invasive surgery.

Robotic-assisted Surgery

This minimally invasive surgery is done through small incisions and enhances your surgeons’ accuracy and precision. The robotic system uses 3D imaging and instruments that let your surgeon perform surgery with superior control and dexterity — far greater than the human hand. Like other types of minimally invasive surgery, robotic-assisted surgery can offer less pain and a faster recovery. Procedures also take less time than other approaches and require less time in the hospital.

Spine Surgery

If your back pain isn’t relieved with nonsurgical approaches like pain management and physical therapy, your doctor may recommend back surgery. Neurology and spine experts at the Methodist Neuroscience Institute are recognized globally for their expertise.

Surgeons are skilled at performing traditional open surgery, and our advanced expertise allows us to offer minimally invasive approaches for:

Damaged (bulging, herniated or ruptured) discs
Degenerative disc disease
Lower-back pain, such as a slipped disc (spondylolisthesis)
Spinal canal narrowing (spinal stenosis)
Spinal deformity, such as sideways curvature (scoliosis)
Spine trauma, including compression fractures
Spine tumors

We provide a full range of procedures to treat back pain and spine conditions, including:

Spinal fusion – Permanently connects (fuses) two or more spine bones (vertebrae) to stop movement between them using additional bone (bone graft). Fusion is used to treat scoliosis, prevent excessive motion between vertebrae that causes instability, and stabilize the spine after damaged disc removal.
Herniated disc treatment – Removal of just the protruding part of the disc (gel-like structures between vertebrae) or the entire disc (diskectomy). If the entire disk is removed, surgeons fuse the vertebrae with a bone graft.
Spinal stenosis decompression – Procedures that take pressure off spinal nerves, such as removing a vertebra or disk (corpectomy), removing part of a disk to take pressure off a nerve (diskectomy), expanding the opening for nerves (foraminotomy), or removing bony arches on the spinal canal (laminotomy) or bone spurs (osteophytes) to relieve pressure.
Spinal implants – Devices that treat spinal deformity and strengthen and stabilize the spine. Implants treat various back problems, such as spine fractures, scoliosis, spondylolisthesis and spinal stenosis. Implants are often used as part of spinal fusion.

Neurosurgery