Neurosurgery
Learn about the innovative approaches employed by Duke neurosurgeons to treat people with a variety of conditions, from brain cancer to spinal deformities.
Young Man Gets Driver’s License After Epilepsy Surgery Eliminates Seizures
Hampstead, NC native Harvey Squires was diagnosed with epilepsy at 14 years old. As his seizures worsened, Harvey’s parents sought care for him from doctors ac ...
Hemispherectomy Cures Epilepsy in Young Girl, Now Thriving
Ela Allam was diagnosed with epilepsy at age three and started taking anti-seizure medications. As Ela grew, her seizures became more frequent and more dangero ...
Chiari Malformation Symptoms Improve After Minimally Invasive Brain Surgery at Duke
Kendra Gerlach was used to chronic headaches; she’d had them since childhood. In May 2022, the 50-year-old, Richmond, VA resident experienced a headache so exc ...
HIFU for Essential Tremor Reduces Shaking
If you’ve been diagnosed with essential tremor and medication is not doing enough to control your involuntary shaking, high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) ...
Minimally Invasive Procedure Corrects Vein of Galen Malformation
During a routine ultrasound, Amanda Brown, age 29, learned her unborn baby had a rare brain abnormality called a vein of Galen malformation, which can cause de ...
Duke Experts Perform Successful Brain Surgery for Moyamoya
As a college student in Greenville, SC, Marcie O’Neill began experiencing headaches, vision changes, numbness, and speech problems. After a trip to her local h ...
Awake Surgery for Endovascular Brain Aneurysm Repair Lowers Risks, Speeds Recovery
After being diagnosed with an unruptured brain aneurysm in fall 2021, Bridget Esposito learned she needed brain surgery to prevent a life-threatening rupture. ...
Have a Brain Aneurysm? Assess Your Risk of Rupture with More Accuracy at Duke
Unruptured brain aneurysms, bulging areas in the brain’s blood vessels, can be dangerous -- even deadly -- if they leak or rupture. In the past, determining wh ...
5 Questions to Ask Your Doctor About Epilepsy Surgery
Epilepsy surgery can be highly effective at reducing or eliminating seizures. However, many people don’t understand the potential benefits and when epilepsy su ...
Runner Competes in Marathon After Eyebrow Craniotomy for Brain Aneurysm
A morning run turned scary for Hillary Lockemer in July 2012, when the then 32-year-old suddenly became weak and passed out. Doctors diagnosed her with a ruptu ...
Deep Brain Stimulation Surgery Relieves Parkinson’s Symptoms in Air Force Colonel
Paul Brezinski was only 37 when he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. Within eight years, his tremors made life so difficult that he traveled from his hom ...
Stroke Survivor Becomes Advocate for Stroke Awareness and Heart Health
When 44-year-old Raleigh resident Andy Beal suddenly became disoriented and weak in the middle of the night, he didn’t realize he was experiencing a “mini-stro ...