Neurological Disorders

Many neurological problems in children are congenital — birth defects or conditions that emerge in the womb — that don't develop in adults. For newborns and infants, specialized teams at UCSF Children's Hospital diagnose and treat rare and complex conditions and perform delicate operations of the brain, spine and other parts of the nervous system. Special equipment is used to accommodate the small bodies of infants and children, to monitor the precise doses of anesthesia and medications and to prevent blood loss during surgery.

At UCSF, we have the most comprehensive pediatric neurological surgery program in Northern California. We are experts in treating conditions such as brain tumors, cerebral palsy, Chiari malformation, Devic's disease, hydrocephalus, vein of Galen malformations and others. We offer state-of-the-art treatment for craniofacial anomalies, which are abnormalities of the skull and face, and craniosynostosis, the premature closure of the skull's sutures or fibrous joints between the bones of the skull.

Our UCSF Pediatric Stroke and Cerebrovascular Disease Center is staffed by the world's leading experts in stroke and cerebrovascular disease among children. And our Pediatric Epilepsy Center specializes in comprehensive diagnosis and the most advanced treatments for infants, children and adolescents living with epilepsy.

One of only a few programs of its kind in Northern California, UCSF's Spina Bifida Program offers medical and social support and treatment to infants, children and adolescents with spina bifida and other spinal birth defects involving exposed vertebrae.

UCSF's Regional Pediatric Multiple Sclerosis Center — the only one of its kind on the West Coast — has been designated by the National Multiple Sclerosis Society as a Pediatric Multiple Sclerosis Center of Excellence for comprehensive care of children and adolescents with multiple sclerosis.

Reviewed by health care specialists at UCSF Children's Hospital.
Last updated February 19, 2008