Conditions & Treatments

Developed by neurosurgeons, this resource provides patients and their families trustworthy information on a wide range of neurosurgical conditions and diseases. Learn about disease and injury risk factors, symptoms, diagnosis and both surgical and nonsurgical treatment options.

Select the treatment or condition you are interested in for more detailed information.

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Patient Content

Morgan McCracken’s Patient Story

By:
  • AANS Neurosurgical Members
Last updated: July 15, 2024
Neurosurgeon: Alan R. Cohen, MD, FAANS, Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital, Cleveland Patient: Morgan McCracken, age 7, Acute Epidural Hematoma Morgan was playing baseball in the front yard with her dad and […]
Patient Content

Movement Disorders

By:
  • AANS
Last updated: June 26, 2024
Movement Disorders: Ataxia · Dystonia · Essential Tremor · Huntington's Disease · Multiple System Atrophy (MSA) · Myoclonus · Parkinson's Disease · Progressive
Patient Content

Neck Pain

By:
  • Alex P. Michael, MD
Last updated: April 26, 2024
Neck pain is pain that starts in the neck and can be associated with radiating pain down one or both of the arms. Neck pain can come from a number of disorders or diseases that involve any of the tissues in the neck, nerves, bones, joints, ligaments or muscles.
Patient Content

Neurofibromatosis

By:
  • Anand V. Germanwala,MD, FAANS
Last updated: April 26, 2024
Neurofibromatosis (NF), a type of phakomatosis or syndrome with neurological and cutaneous manifestations, is a rare genetic disorder that typically causes benign tumors of the nerves and growths in other parts of the body, including the skin.
Patient Content

Occipital Neuralgia

By:
  • Julie G Pilitsis, MD, PhD, FAANSChair, Neuroscience & Experimental Therapeutics Professor, Neurosurgery and Neuroscience & Experimental Therapeutics Albany Medical College Dr. Pilitsis specializes in neuromodulation with research interests in treatments for movement disorders and chronic pain.
  • Olga Khazen, BSResearch Coordinator Neuroscience & Experimental Therapeutics Albany Medical College
Last updated: April 30, 2024
Occipital Neuralgia is a condition in which the occipital nerves, the nerves that run through the scalp, are injured or inflamed.
Patient Content

Osteoarthritis

By:
  • Stephen Magill, MD, PhDNeurosurgical Resident, University of California San Francisco
Last updated: April 30, 2024
Osteoarthritis is the most common type of arthritis and affects middle-aged or older people most frequently.
Patient Content

Parkinson’s Disease

By:
  • AANS
Last updated: May 9, 2024
Parkinson's disease is a progressive disorder that is caused by degeneration of nerve cells in the part of the brain called
Patient Content

Patti Gilstrap’s Patient Story

By:
  • Patti A. GilstrapPatient
Last updated: July 17, 2024
Neurosurgeon: Gary K. Steinberg, MD, PhD, Stanford University Medical Center, Stanford, Calif. Patient: Patti A. Gilstrap, age 49, Cavernous Malformations On Nov. 7, 1987, my first bleed presented itself with a […]
Patient Content

Pituitary Adenomas

By:
  • AANS
Last updated: April 30, 2024
The pituitary is a small gland attached to the base of the brain (behind the nose) in an area called the pituitary fossa or sella turcica.
Patient Content

Pituitary Gland and Pituitary Tumors

By:
Last updated: June 26, 2024
The pituitary is a small gland attached to the base of the brain (behind the nose) in an area called the pituitary fossa or sella turcica. The pituitary is often called […]