UPMC Presbyterian entrance

The flagship hospital for the department of Neurological Surgery is UPMC Presbyterian, an 800-bed level 1, fully accredited regional trauma center and part of the UPMC Health System. Other affiliations for resident training include the Veterans Administration Hospital which is fully integrated into the adult service, and the Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh. Additional UPMC affiliations have extended the staff neurosurgical care to several hospitals including UPMC Shadyside, Latrobe Area Hospital, UPMC South Side, Frick Hospital, and UPMC Lee Regional.

The neurological care facilities at UPMC Presbyterian consist of 21 private floor beds, eight semi-private beds, a four bed adult epilepsy monitoring unit, a 13 bed continuous care step down unit, a 10 bed combined general/neurosurgical trauma intensive care unit, and an eight bed neurosurgical intensive care unit. The ICUs and continuous care unit are equipped with monitoring equipment including EMTEK system 2000 computerized nursing monitors, cerebral oximetry, continuous CO2 monitoring systems, xenon 133 cerebral blood flow analysis capability, micro dialysis, continuous on line intracranial pressure monitoring, venous oxygen saturation monitoring, and modified Ramsay sedation monitors.

At UPMC an average of six neurosurgical operating rooms are in use each day. Between 4,000 and 5,000 operations are performed annually. Since 1982 one room was dedicated to image guided functional or stereotactic procedures. Currently it is equipped with a General Electric (Model 9800) high resolution CT scanner and a ceiling mounted fluoroscope. The presence of a scanner within the operating room suite decreases transport time and increases patient safety. Multiple image-guided navigation systems are utilized for frameless stereotactic guidance. A total of ten stereotactic frames and three stereotactic biopsy systems are available. A newly renovated neurovascular or has intraoperative angiographic capabilities and is continuously available for emergency procedures. The overwhelming volume of microvascular cases has enabled the staff to utilize six Zeiss microscopes with Contraves bases, four of which have varioscope capabilities and are totally automated for one touch objective changes. There are three Midas Rex, three Zimmer ultra power, and two Black Max high speed drills, as well as 10 Codman craniotomes. Spine equipment includes CD, TSRH, Acromed, and Orion spinal fixation systems, and two Andrews tables.

Surgiscope©

One of our operating rooms houses a robotic, computer assisted microscope system, the "Surgiscope®", for image guided microsurgery. A second Gamma Knife unit was installed in August 1996 to facilitate both clinical and research goals. This unit (Model C) was recenty refitted with a robotic automatic repositioning system (APS) which permits greater accuracy in radiation dose planning. The original Gamma Knife unit was the first 201 source Gamma Knife installed in North America. Since August, 1987 more than 5,000 patients have undergone radiosurgery at this center and clinic volume now exceds 600 patients a year.

Laboratory facilities are located within the medical school and the newly constructed 17 story Basic Science Research tower. A microneurosurgery lab with two Zeiss microscopes and high speed Anspach Drills is always available to residents and faculty, who can hone their skills and perfect techniques. Seminars sponsored by the center for minimally invasive neurosurgery are held to evaluate new equipment and techniques. The brain trauma research center laboratory utilizes over 15,000 square feet for various traumatic brain injury protocols. The center for clinical neurophysiology laboratory supports research in neuroelectronics systems, auditory neurophysiology, and computational neuroscience. Research facilities within the medical school and the Basic Science Tower are over 5,000 square feet. A new neurological laboratory, the Walter Copeland Laboratory, in Scaife Hall was recently opened.

The department is housed in a 15,000 square foot pavilion which consists of faculty and resident offices, a resident library, examination rooms and a state-of-the-art multi-media conference room.

For an interactive map to UPMC Presbyterian, including driving directions from any location in the United States and Canada, click on the image below.

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