Endoscopic Neurosurgery at Dignity Health - St. Rose Dominican Hospitals

Endoscopic neurosurgery is a technique involving a thin, flexible camera (endoscope) and surgical instruments inserted through either a natural opening in the body or through a small incision. Neurosurgeons use it to treat a variety of head, spine, and brain conditions.

With endoscopic neurosurgery, the surgeon sees a magnified view of the surgical area on a video monitor, eliminating the need to make a larger incision through the skin and skull to perform the operation. It’s a highly precise surgical technique that reduces the need to manipulate brain tissue and major nerves, preserving their function.

Many conditions benefit from endoscopic neurosurgery. The doctors at Dignity Health - St. Rose Dominican hospitals are here to provide personalized care for your endoscopic neurosurgery in Las Vegas or Henderson, NV.

 

Do I Need Endoscopic Neurosurgery?

Endoscopic neurosurgery has allowed surgeons to reach tumors and other problem areas previously considered inoperable due to their position inside the skull.

Endoscopic neurosurgery often uses natural body openings, such as the nose, to access internal structures. Performing endoscopic neurosurgery through the nasal cavity is also known as endonasal neurosurgery or the endoscopic endonasal approach (EEA).

Endoscopic neurosurgery is commonly used to treat:

  • Facial bone and skull fractures 
  • Head and neck tumors, including sinus cancer and glomus tumors
  • Herniated spinal discs of the middle or lower back
  • Bone cancers, including osteosarcoma of the skull base
  • Brain tumors, including pituitary tumors
  • Conditions affecting vision such as optic nerve compression
  • Neurovascular conditions, including arteriovenous malformations (abnormal blood vessels) in the brain or spine, aneurysms, and hemorrhagic stroke (from a bleeding blood vessel)
  • Pseudotumors (false tumors) of the brain, including pseudotumor cerebri
  • Spinal compression fractures
  • Cranial nerve damage or disorders such as Bell’s palsy and trigeminal neuralgia 
  • Nervous system cysts, including arachnoid cysts 

Endoscopic neurosurgery also can be used to obtain tissue biopsies from lesions inside the brain and skull.

 

Your Endoscopic Neurosurgery

Endoscopic neurosurgery typically takes place within a hospital and often requires at least an overnight stay for monitoring.

With EEA, you may feel only mild sinus discomfort after the procedure. For surgeries involving small incisions in the scalp and the bone of the skull, you’ll receive pain medicines to keep you comfortable after the procedure.

Before you go home from the hospital, your neurosurgical care team will give you detailed instructions on caring for your incisions (if any), acceptable activity levels, recommended follow-up appointments, and specific recovery times. Physical therapy will likely be part of your recovery. It will help you get back in action as safely as possible.

Most people experience a smooth recovery from endoscopic neurosurgery. With treatment, you can look beyond your brain, nerve, or spine condition to a greatly improved quality of life.

Dignity Health - St. Rose Dominican hospitals provides endoscopic neurosurgery in Las Vegas and Henderson, NV.