Keyhole Brain and Spine

Training //

Dr. Cook did his undergraduate work at Brown University in Providence, RI Earning a Bachelor of Science with Honors in Neuroscience. His thesis was on treatment of brain tumors with high dose radiation and chemotherapy. While there, he published 2 papers on radiation treatment for cancer in scientific journals, and was inducted into the Sigma Xi Scientific Research Society. He then earned his medical degree from the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, where he continued research in the areas of infectious disease, brain hemorrhage, and lumbar disc disease. He won an American Heart Association scholarship for stroke research, and was inducted into the Alpha Omega Alpha Medical Honor Society. He then did his neurosurgical training at The University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA), consistently one of the top 5 hospitals in the country. His research continued, publishing papers on traumatic brain injury, hydrocephalus, pituitary function, spinal cord injury, and novel surgical techniques such as removal of anterior skull base tumors through the nose, and hemispherectomy for seizure control in children. He won the Young Investigator Award, and was chosen as Consult Resident of the Year.  He is board certified in Neurological Surgery. His surgical experience has totaled over 5000 cases in all aspects of neurosurgery including:

• neurovascular diseases such as cerebral aneurysms, arteriovenous malformations, Moya Moya disease, and techniques such as extracranial to intracranial artery bypass;
   

• tumors of the brain, spine, pituitary, skull base, and vertebral column including endoscopic removal of some brain tumors.
   

• spine decompression and instrumentation including the latest minimally invasive techniques in the neck, chest, and low back;
   

• tumors of the pituitary, skull base, and anterior brain removed through the nose microscopically and endoscopically;
   

• carpal tunnel syndrome, ulnar neuropathy, trigeminal neuralgia, hemifacial spasm, and other nerve entrapment syndromes of the arms, legs, and head;
   

• movement disorders such as Parkinson's disease and essential tremor;
   

• brain and spinal cord injuries and hemorrhages; and
   

• pediatric diseases such as birth defects of the head and spine (Chiari malformation, myelomeningocele, tethered cord syndrome), epilepsy, hydrocephalus.