RESTORATIVE NEUROSURGERY: TRIGEMINAL NEURALGIA AND HYDROCEPHALUS
Restorative neurosurgery is an innovative approach to treat damage to the brain and to the nervous system. Dr. Christopher Duma is a leading neurosurgeon in Los Angeles, uses several restorative neurosurgery techniques using best-in-class technology. The exact technique that will be used is always dependant on the disease being treated and the manifestations it shows to each patient.
PROCEDURES USED TO IN THE TREATMENT OF TRIGEMINAL NEURALGIA
Surgical treatment is recommended for trigeminal neuralgia patients when medical therapy based on medication is no longer effective or does not provide lasting relief. While there are several surgical treatments available, and no procedure guarantees a 100% effectiveness rate, the state-of-the-art computers that assist advanced technology systems ensure accuracy and lower the risk of complications. Dr. Duma, a board certified neurosurgeon specialist in surgical brain tumor management, Gamma Knife and CyberKnife™ radiosurgery, and the surgical treatment of movement disorders, uses the following innovative procedures in the treatment of trigeminal neuralgia:
- Microvascular Decompression or MVD is an operation performed under general anesthesia. A small opening is made in the back of the skull, on the same side where pain is located. A microscope allows an excellent view of the trigeminal nerve. During the operation, compressing blood vessels are removed and the nerve is padded with a soft pad.
- Gamma Knife Surgery or stereotactic radiosurgery requires no incision. Highly focused beams of radiation are used to create a lesion, (an area of controlled damage) in the root of the trigeminal nerve, thus interrupting pain transmission.
PROCEDURES USED IN THE TREATMENT OF NORMAL PRESSURE HYDROCEPHALUS
Despite producing symptoms similar to those caused by aging, normal pressure hydrocephalus is not a condition of old age. Known as the disease of the three W’s (weird, wet and wobbly), the condition has three unmistakable symptoms, which can appear together or separately:
- Gait disturbance
- Mild dementia or forgetfulness
- Urinary incontinence
It is a great advantage that there are many diagnostic procedures, as this allows for early diagnosis and treatment. Diagnostic procedures include:
- CT scan (computer tomography)
- MRI scan (magnetic resonance imaging)
- Spinal tap (lumbar puncture)
- Lumbar catheter insertion
- ICP (intracranial pressure monitoring)
- Isotopic cisternography
- Neuropsychological test
The innovative surgical treatment for hydrocephalus is a procedure that consists of the placement of an implantable device, which drains CFS fluid away from the brain. The symptoms of normal pressure hydrocephalus that affect the lives of thousands of people (not only in Los Angeles but all over America), are significantly improved be these shunts able to restore the normal state of enlarged ventricles. Dr. Duma often uses programmable CSF shunts, which have the great advantage of making the implementation a one-time procedure, where follow-up treatments do not require revisional surgery. Programmable CSF shunts used in Newport Beach by Dr. Duma permit a choice of 18 different programmable pressure settings.
For more information on restorative neurosurgery procedures or a consultation with Dr. Duma, please register on our website or call us.
