Stereotactic & Functional Neurosurgery
Trainee-focused references spanning the modern functional repertoire — neuromodulation, ablation, and focused ultrasound — with attention to the clinical reasoning behind candidate selection and the perioperative decisions that determine whether the right operation produces the right outcome.
Deep Brain Stimulation & Movement Disorders
MR-Guided Focused Ultrasound
Focused Ultrasound Thalamotomy for Essential Tremor
Incisionless Vim ablation — the skull density ratio, the sonication ladder, and outcomes versus DBS.
Focused Ultrasound for Parkinson Disease
Thalamus, pallidum, and the pallidothalamic tract — the targets, trials, and 2025 staged bilateral approval.
Focused Ultrasound: Emerging Indications & LIFU
Beyond ablation — blood-brain-barrier opening, low-intensity neuromodulation, and the non-thermal frontier.
Ablative & Lesioning Procedures for Pain
Ablative Neurosurgery for Cancer Pain
Cordotomy, mesencephalotomy, midline myelotomy, and DREZ — matching the lesion to the level and type of pain.
Percutaneous Procedures for Trigeminal Neuralgia
Radiofrequency, balloon compression, and glycerol — chosen by trigeminal division and patient cooperation.
Atypical & Neuropathic Facial Pain
Peripheral trigeminal neuromodulation, nucleus caudalis DREZ, and motor cortex or deep brain stimulation.
Pain: Neuromodulation & Drug Delivery
Spinal Cord Stimulation: Evidence & Indication Review
A trainee framework for PDN, nonsurgical refractory back pain, neuropathy, central pain, trial selection, and safety.
The Anatomy of a Successful Trial
Spinal cord stimulation: phenotypes, red flags, and why the hardware is the easy part.
Intrathecal Drug Delivery
Targeted analgesia and intrathecal baclofen — the trial, implant technique, and the withdrawal emergency.
Perioperative & Safety References
Periprocedural Anticoagulation Reference
ASRA & NACC guidance for neuraxial neuromodulation — agent-by-agent hold and restart intervals in quick-reference table form.
Antibiotic Prophylaxis & Infection Management
Weight-based prophylaxis, intraoperative adjuncts, MRSA decolonization, and empiric therapy across SCS, DBS, RNS, pumps, and epilepsy surgery.