Neurosurgery Faculty

Dennis Spencer

Chair

Harvey and Kate Cushing Professor of Neurosurgery
Chair, Department of Neurosurgery
Director, Epilepsy Surgery Program
Director, Pituitary Tumor Program

Research Interests:Cerebral metabolic abnormalities that sustain epileptogenesis using MR spectroscopy, microdialysis, and human tissue studies

Clinical Interests:Epilepsy surgery; pituitary tumors; brain tumors; general neurosurgery; MR spectroscopy; microdialysis; human tissue studies

Khalid Abbed

Assistant Professor of Neurosurgery
Chief, Neurosurgery Spine
Director, Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery
Director, Spine Tumor Surgery
Co-Director, YNHH Spine Center

Research Interests:Clinical trials; Outcome studies; New technologies and innovations in spine surgery; Minimally invasive Transforaminal Lumbar Interbody Fusion (TLIF); back surgery vs open TLIF

Clinical Interests:Back and neck pain; spine fractures; spine trauma; sciatica/radiculopathy; degenerative spine disease; herniated disc; spinal stenosis; spinal deformity; myelopathy; laminectomy; foraminotomy; spinal fusion; minimally invasive spine surgery; complex spinal surgery and reconstruction; spine and spinal cord tumors; revision spine surgery; artificial disc replacement; X-Stop; kyphoplasty; vertebroplasty; general neurosurgery

Joachim Baehring

Associate Professor of Neurology, of Medicine (Medical Oncology) and of Neurosurgery
Clinical Program Leader, Brain Tumor Program, Smilow Cancer Hospital

Research Interests:Molecular markers of cancer; Nervous system lymphoma

Clinical Interests:Chemotherapy of primary brain tumors (high-grade gliomas, central nervous system lymphoma); neurological complications of brain cancer; general neurology; molecular markers of cancer.

Angelique Bordey

Professor of Neurosurgery and of Cellular and Molecular Physiology

Research Interests:Neurogenesis; stem cells; mTOR; Neural stem cell; Cognitive functions; autism

Clinical Interests:Tuberous Sclerosis Complex, Autism, Neurodevelopmental disorder

Ketan Bulsara

Associate Professor of Neurosurgery
Director of Neuroendovascular and Skull Base Surgery Programs

Research Interests:cerebral neurogenesis and angiogenesis; cerebral vasospasm; skull base anatomy; cerebral bypass techniques; endovascular technology development

Clinical Interests:Neurovascular surgery, Skull base/cerebrovascular microsurgery; interventional radiology, neuroendovascular surgery; neurovascular and skull base pathologies; aneurysms; strokes; complex skull-based tumors; arteriovenous malformations, carotid angioplasty/stenting; brain tumors

Veronica Chiang

Associate Professor of Neurosurgery and of Therapeutic Radiology
Director, Stereotactic Radiosurgery
Medical Director, Yale New Haven Hospital Gamma Knife Center

Research Interests:Brain Tumor; Cancer; Cerebral Metastases; Clinical Outcomes; Radiation Side Effects; Radiosurgery

Clinical Interests:Gamma Knife stereotactic radiosurgery; general neurosurgery; cerebral metastases; brain cancer; pituitary cancer; endocrine cancer; peripheral nerve surgery; stereotactic needle biopsy; management of traumatic brain injury; neurosurgical critical care

Nihal deLanerolle

Professor of Neurosurgery and of Neurobiology

Research Interests:Molecular and cellular neuropathology of human seizure foci; development of animal models of human temporal lobe epilepsy; neuropathology of Traumatic brain injury

Michael DiLuna

Assistant Professor of Neurosurgery and of Pediatrics

Research Interests:genetics of brain development; congenital disorders

Clinical Interests:pediatric brain and spine tumors; hydrocephalus; spina bifida; craniofacial abnormalities; tethered cord; Chiari malformation; arteriovenous malformations; pediatric head and spine trauma; Moya Moya; pediatric stroke; craniopharyngioma lipomyelomeningocele; craniosynostesis; spine deformity

Robert Duckrow

Associate Professor of Neurology and of Neurosurgery
Chief, Epilepsy Monitoring Unit

Research Interests:Electroencephalography; Epilepsy; Time Series Analysis; Regional interaction of brain electrical activity during seizure onset and propagation; Generation and influence of electrical fields in the brain; Computational methods of electroencephalographic analysis; Deep brain stimulation for epilepsy; Implanted medical devices; Ethics of medical research

Clinical Interests:Adult epilepsy; clinical neurophysiology

Charles Duncan

Professor of Neurosurgery and of Pediatrics
Director, Neurosurgery Residency Program
Director, Pediatric Neurosurgery

Research Interests:Adaptation of the developing brain to injury

Clinical Interests:Tumors of the nervous system; Nervous system/spine trauma care; Central nervous system congenital anomalies such as hydrocephalus, spina bifida, holoprosencephaly, Dandy Walker cyst; Medically intractable epilepsy in infants and children; Spinal cord cancer; Brain cancer

Jason Gerrard

Assistant Professor of Neurosurgery
Section Chief, Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery

Research Interests:Epilepsy; Seizure detection; Development of intelligent brain-machine devices for treatment of neurological disease; Neural networks; Movement disorders

Clinical Interests:Epilepsy; Parkinson's Disease; Movement Disorders; Essential Tremor; Spasticity; Brain Tumors; Trigeminal Neuralgia; NeuroTrauma and NeuroIntensive Monitoring; Spinal Conditions

Charles Greer

Professor of Neurosurgery and of Neurobiology
Vice Chair of Research, Neurosurgery
Director, Interdepartmental Neuroscience Graduate Program

Research Interests:Development; specificity of synaptic circuits; aging; cellular and molecular biology of the nervous system

Murat Gunel

Nixdorff-German Professor of Neurosurgery and Professor of Genetics and of Neurobiology
Co-Director, Yale Program on Neurogenetics
Director, Neurovascular Surgery

Research Interests:Molecular genetics and biology of brain aneurysms and cavernous malformations; molecular genetics of brain development

Clinical Interests:Brain aneurysms; arterio-venous malformations (AVM); cavernous malformations; occlusive vascular disorders, carotid surgery; stereotactic radiosurgery; neurovascular intensive care unit (ICU); stroke

Hoby Hetherington

Professor (Adjunct) of Neurosurgery and Professor of Diagnostic Radiology

Research Interests:High field methods and hardware for magnetic resonance imaging; human brain; metabolism and dysfunction in epilepsy; magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging

Joseph King, Jr

Associate Professor of Neurosurgery
Chief, Neurosurgery at VA Connecticut Healthcare System
Director, Neurosurgical Outcomes Research
Chair, VA Neurosurgery Surgical Advisory Board

Research Interests:measurement of patient-oriented outcomes and quality of life (QOL) in patients with neurologic disease; incorporating patient preferences into neurosurgical decision-making; cost-effectiveness analyses; using large databases to examine health care systems issues

Clinical Interests:General neurosugery, spine surgery, carpal tunnel and ulnar nerve surgery

Maxwell Laurans

Assistant Professor of Neurosurgery

Clinical Interests:Neuro-oncology; Brain Tumors and Brain Cancer; Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery; Complex Spinal Surgery and Reconstruction; Spine Tumors; Spinal Cord Tumors; Spine Trauma; Degenerative Spine Disease; Revision Spine Surgery; Artificial Disc Replacement; General Neurosurgery; Stereotactic Needle Biopsy

Angeliki Louvi

Associate Professor of Neurosurgery and of Neurobiology

Research Interests:Vertebrate neural development; mechanisms of brain morphogenesis and pathogenesis; blood-CSF barrier; choroid plexus; hydrocephalus; cerebrovascular disease; cerebral cavernous malformation; neurodevelopmental disorders; CADASIL; Notch signaling; structural brain disorders

Charles Matouk

Assistant Professor of Neurosurgery and of Diagnostic Radiology

Research Interests:Molecular biology - genetics of a diseased vascular endothelium in cerebrovascular disorders; Translational application of advanced imaging protocols in risk stratification of neurovascular disease

Clinical Interests:Brain aneurysms; arteriovenous malformations (AVM); cavernous malformations; dural arteriovenous fistulas; occlusive vascular disorders; carotid surgery and carotid angioplasty & stenting; endovascular treatment of acute ischemic stroke

Jullie Pan

Associate Professor (Adjunct) of Neurosurgery and Associate Professor of Diagnostic Radiology and of Neurology

Research Interests:Metabolic physiology of brain; neurotransmission and brain function; development and implementation of imaging in humans at ultra-high field (7Tesla); metabolic pathophysiology of epilepsy; clinical epilepsy; epilepsy imaging; outcome studies

Clinical Interests:Epilepsy; Electroencephalogram (EEG)

Joseph Piepmeier

Nixdorff-German Professor of Neurosurgery
Vice Chair of Clinical Affairs, Neurosurgery
Section Chief, Neuro-Oncology
Director, Surgical Neuro-Oncology
Clinical Research Program Leader, Brain Tumor Program, Yale Cancer Center

Research Interests:neuro-oncology; acoustic neuroma; general neurosurgery; brain and spinal cord cancer; brachytherapy; stereotactic needle biopsy

Clinical Interests:Neuro-oncology; acoustic neuroma; general neurosurgery; brain and spinal cord cancer; stereotactic needle biopsy; Gamma Knife radiosurgery.

Anthony Van den Pol

Professor of Neurosurgery

Research Interests:Hypothalamus; neuroendocrinology; neural control of energy homeostasis; neuropeptide modulation of amino acid transmitter actions; hypocretin/orexin and MCH neurons; Neurovirology; viral vectors; oncolytic viruses

Jiangbing Zhou

Assistant Professor of Neurosurgery and of Biomedical Engineering

Research Interests:Nanomedicine; Brain cancer stem cells; Neurodegenerative disorders; Drug delivery; Gene therapy; Stem cell therapy; Personalized therapy