Neurosurgery

When a child with a neurological disorder requires surgery, the experts at Cook Children's Medical Center offer comprehensive care and state-of-the-art technology.

With the help of such state-of-the-art equipment as the revolutionary Intraoperative MRI (iMRI), our neurosurgeons are able to determine effectiveness of surgical procedures for cranial and spinal nerve disorders and tailor the treatment to each child's unique needs.

• Conditions treated
• Advanced technologies and innovations
• Our specialty care team
• A day in the life of a neurosurgeon
• Requesting an appointment
• Prepare for an appointment
• Prepare for a procedure
• Pediatric deep brain stimulation
• What is deep brain stimulation?

Conditions treated

Our expanded program includes care across many areas of expertise for pediatric deep brain stimulation, neuro-oncology, stroke and brachial plexus and epilepsy surgery.

• Arachnoid cyst
• Brachial plexus
• Chiari malformation and syrinx
• Herniated or bulging discs
• Tethered cord
• Spina Bifida
• Spinal cord tumor
• Stenosis

Advanced technologies mean innovative care

Cook Children's offers some of the most advanced, kid-friendly care in the nation. With leading-edge imaging and diagnostic capabilities, our specialists are able to better treat patients and help them get back to doing what they do best: being kids.

Neurodiagnostics

The Neurodiagnostic Center at Cook Children's offers the most innovative and advanced technologies to diagnose, evaluate, and treat the conditions that affect a child's brain and development. At Cook Children's, you'll have access to leading-edge resources, brilliant doctors, and a team of highly skilled medical professionals who specialize in pediatric neurology. All with one purpose in mind: to help your child have the best quality of care possible. Learn more.

 

iMRI

The iMRI suite is a special operating room developed for brain surgery. It combines innovative surgical and imaging tools in one place. Surgeons can take high-quality MRIs during surgery to see the area of the brain they are operating on, the size and shape of tumors, and the difference between healthy and unhealthy tissue. And because surgeons have the ability to see and remove the entire tumor during one surgery, these tools make surgery more precise, reducing risk and the need for a second surgery. Learn more.

MEG

The latest development in magnetic imaging technology, the MEG makes finding and diagnosing a brain condition much easier for our doctors. Billions of neurons fire off trillions of electric signals, making the brain a very busy place. The MEG maps all of that activity so that doctors can pinpoint with incredible accuracy where in the brain the seizure is occurring and what removing tissue from that area may affect, like speech. This helps to determine the best course of treatment for each patient. Learn more.

EMU

Designed especially for patients with difficult to diagnose and control seizures, our advanced Epilepsy Monitoring Unit (EMU) offers the latest in high-tech evaluation tools. State-of-the-art wireless technology lets our team of highly trained EEG technologists record a child's brain activity while they do kid activities: visiting with other patients on the unit or in the play area, playing games, doing crafts, and sleeping. All in a safe environment surrounded by a specialized care team. Learn more.

3D modeling

3D modeling offers a unique dimension in the diagnosis and treatment of brain conditions. Advanced techniques create an actual 3D image of your child's brain. The neuro team then uses this image to map the location of tumors, epileptic seizures, and other neurologic conditions. This is especially useful in pinpointing a surgical area and determining the best course of treatment for your child. Learn more.

Our specialty care team

The Neuroscience programs at Cook Children's enlist the talents of many experts, including neurologists, neurosurgeons, nurses and nurse practitioners, psychologists, electroencephalography (EEG) technologists, medical assistants and administrative staff. As a result, we provide some of the most comprehensive patient-centered care for the children in our community and surrounding regions.

Of course, because parents and caregivers are the most important members of each child's care team, we also look to you as experts on your child.

This team approach allows us to meet many of your child's specialized health care needs and deliver uncommon care to every child, every day.

Neurosurgeons

	Donahue, David J. M.D. View physician biography.		Roberts, Richard M.D. View physician biography.

	Honeycutt, John M.D. Medical Director, Neurosurgery Medical Director, Neuro-Trauma View physician biography.

Neurosurgery physician assistants and nurse practitioners

A day in the life of a neurosurgeon

It’s the people in a hospital that make the difference. Watch as John Honeycutt, M.D., neurosurgeon, takes care of patients and their families in a way they come to trust.

Requesting an appointment

To request an appointment, you may either call our office at 682-885-2500 or fill out our appointment request form. A member of our staff will contact you within one business day to schedule your appointment and get more information.

Prepare for an appointment

It is important that we have your child's medical records when you come for an appointment. You may fax them to us in advance (682-885-2510), or bring them with you to the appointment.

Our team also requests that you bring:

• Any CAT scans or MRI scans that are pertinent to your child's appointment. The actual scans are preferred because reports are usually do not provide enough information. If you received your scans on a CD, this works as well.
• All reports of previous surgeries for the condition we will talk about with you regarding your child.
• Any notes from previous evaluations for the condition your child is coming to see us about.
• A list of your child's medications.

You should receive an automated confirmation/reminder call 48 hours prior to your scheduled appointment. The message may include details related to your office visit such as the patient's name, the date and time of the appointment, and the location. A map and directions are available by clicking the link on this page.

Prepare for a procedure

Surgery information
Our Neurosurgery program provides services that include the evaluation and surgery of brain, nerve and spinal cord diseases and disorders in infants, children and teenagers. Neurosurgical intervention may be needed in cases of:

Surgery tours
Having surgery can be stressful and scary for a child.

To help ease these fears, pre-surgery tours are led weekly by a Child Life specialist. The tour allows patients who are at least 4 years old, and their families, to see the operating and recovery rooms before the day of the surgery. During the tour, the Child Life specialist will help you understand what will happen on the day of surgery.

If your child is younger than 4 years old, a private tour can be arranged.

Benefits of a pre-surgery tour:

• Eases patient fears by talking about the surgery process.
• Allows the child and family to learn more about Cook Children's Medical Center, such as where to check in, wait and recover on the day of surgery.
• Gives the child and parents a chance to ask questions before the day of surgery.

Tour schedule
Pre-surgery tours are held once a week and last 45 minutes to one hour. To schedule a tour, please call Outpatient Surgery at 682-885-4022. If you are unable to come to one of the scheduled tours, a private tour can be set up with a Child Life specialist at a more convenient time.

Pediatric deep brain stimulation

Cook Children's is the first independent pediatric hospital in the United States, and the only children's hospital in Texas, to offer a comprehensive movement disorder program that includes deep brain stimulation (DBS).

What is deep brain stimulation?

Deep brain stimulation, or DBS, is a surgery that places electrodes into the brain. The electrodes are connected to an implanted medical device, sometimes referred to as a brain pacemaker, that delivers continuous low-voltage electrical impulses to the targeted part of the brain. These pulses block the abnormal firing of neurons in the targeted area providing relief for patients whose symptoms are not properly controlled by medication.

DBS is used to restore normal function in patients with physiological and movement disorders such as essential tremor and dystonia. The goal of DBS is to reduce muscle tone, improve function and prevent the progression of movement disorders to other areas of the body.

Successful DBS surgery can make considerable improvements to a patient's quality of life, with changes occurring three to six months after activation of the system.

Since the first implant in 2007, Cook Children's has established itself as one of the elite DBS programs in the nation, with 13 surgical cases over a 10-month period. Our program offers a dedicated team including: