The Children's Neuroscience Center at Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital is at the forefront of advancing treatment for pediatric patients, offering minimally invasive treatment for endoscopic brain surgery and comprehensive diagnosis, evaluation and treatment of a wide range of neurological disorders. Our multidisciplinary team approach combines the expertise of pediatric neurologists, epileptologists, neurosurgeons, neuroradiologists and neuropsychologists to ensure your child receives the best care available.
Our skilled medical professionals use the most sophisticated surgical, diagnostic and imaging techniques and equipment, such as diagnostic electroencephalography (EEG), video EEG monitoring, stereotactic EEG (SEEG), diagnostic electromyography (EMG), and diagnostic magnetoencephalography (MEG). Our pediatric neurosurgeons are at the forefront of medicine, performing life-changing surgeries like selective dorsal rhizotomy, which can help children with Cerebral Palsy to walk again. They have an active research program, with innovative trials in progress for the treatment of pediatric brain tumors, spasticity, traumatic brain injury, hydrocephalus, and more. Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital was named one of the top children's hospitals nationally in Neurology and Neurosurgery by U.S. News & World Report.
We provide individualized education and support services for families, helping them from diagnosis through treatment and follow-up care for a broad range of neurological disorders.
The Neurology department at the Children’s Neuroscience Center is dedicated to providing the highest level of care to patients with disorders of the brain, spine, and nervous system, combining expert care with the most advanced technology.
When surgery is required, the physicians at the Children’s Neuroscience Center use minimally invasive techniques that minimize patient risk. We are committed to providing patients with excellent outcomes and quality care.
When Valeria Urbina of Porter, TX, turned 18, she wasn’t thinking about parties, presents or her future. Instead, her milestone birthday was spent at the hospital, overcoming a life-threatening medical condition.
Maddox, now 15, has spent much of his life navigating complex medical challenges, but his story is one of joy, resilience and community. His journey has not only shaped his family but inspired a growing tradition at Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital that touches dozens of families twice a year...
At 6 months of age and now home from the hospital, the twins were progressing at different rates. Zayn wasn’t sitting up or crawling like his brother Omar, who was steadily meeting his milestones. That’s when doctors diagnosed Zayn with spastic diplegia, a form of cerebral palsy that ...
Due to the severity of the impact, Ivan’s seat flew out of the car, and he became trapped in his seat belt. It took two hours for an emergency response team with special equipment to remove the family from their vehicle
Diagnosed with Hurler-Scheie syndrome at just 10 years old, Rylee hasn’t had an easy journey, but her strength and positive attitude have never wavered through it all.
As Finley approached his teen years, he faced multiple procedures that profoundly impacted his life under the skilled care of Manish Shah, MD, a pediatric neurosurgeon affiliated with Children's Memorial Hermann Hospital and its Children’s Neuroscience Center. His journey through years of physica...
Around the age of 3, Zion was officially diagnosed with cerebral palsy (CP). After several temporary therapies and treatments, Zion’s parents continued to advocate for their son.
On September 24, 2022, Chase and Kendall had a few friends over at their family farm in El Campo where they gathered around the fire pit, grilling fajitas. It was supposed to be a fun and relaxing afternoon on the farm. But then, in a matter of minutes, everything changed so quickly. Ripp had bee...
The Carkhuffs’ journey to find answers for their son involved relocating their family 1,600 miles away from their home in Pennsylvania to Houston, Texas, where they found hope. Houston has been home to the family for the past 16 years, and it was in Houston where they found the doctors that...
An MRI revealed a tumor on Cynthia’s spine. The pressure was affecting her nerves, causing numbness in her legs. Because of the location of the tumor, it was critical that it be removed as quickly as possible before causing further damage to the nerves in her spi...
"The ultrasound showed the ventricles in my baby’s brain were enlarged,” said Courtney. “Concerned he might have hydrocephalus, my OB-GYN sent me to a maternal-fetal medicine specialist in town.” A few days later, Courtney met with her family friend and MFM physician, Dr. ...
A few weeks later, Sarah returned to her OB-GYN for another anatomy ultrasound. As the ultrasound technician glided the probe on Sarah’s growing belly, she noticed something unusual on the monitor. “The ultrasound showed Wyatt had fluid in his brain,” said Sarah.
Their baby had spina bifida. A portion of her lower spinal cord was exposed. The long-term effects could be seizures, bowel and bladder control issues, and difficulty walking. She might also need a special shunt to regulate her brain’s fluid levels.
Carlos’ intraventricular hemorrhage (neonatal brain bleed) led to scarring in his brain from being born prematurely. The severe scarring and lack of blood flow to his brain tissue contributed to periventricular leukomalacia (PVL), a softening of the white brain tissue near the fluid-f...
A novel treatment approach at Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital is giving 17-year-old Himanshu Prasad the opportunity to live life free of the muscle tightness and spasticity that has plagued him since birth.
When an MRI revealed a cyst causing pressure on 11-year-old Santiago Sanchez’s brain, doctors in Mexico City were unable to offer treatment options. The family’s search for treatment ultimately led them to Children’s Memorial Hermann-affiliated pediatric neurosurgeon, David Sand...
Hailee Nail learned her baby had spina bifida on Aug. 13, 2020, when she saw her obstetrician in Tulsa, Okla., for her 20-week anatomy scan. “My OB/GYN told me that it would require surgery and gave me the names of several centers, but he wanted me to go to Houston,” she says.
Aubree was diagnosed as a baby with spastic triplegic cerebral palsy. In her case, both her legs and her left arm had spasticity – a condition that made her affected limbs rigid and stiff. Because of the spasticity, Aubree has had physical therapy since she was a baby to help manage it. She has n...
Chloe spent months in the offices of a local neurologist and neurosurgeon as they tried to determine what was wrong. Finally, one of them referred her to Dr. Ian Butler, a pediatric neurologist affiliated with Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital, about her many health concerns: headaches, lack o...
When a very rare brain condition caused fourth-grader Lauren Lackey to slip into a coma, her parents, Sandy and Mark Lackey hate to think what would have happened to their daughter if the ambulance had not made the long drive to Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital. Mark remembers feeling i...
By the time he was 3 months old, Wesley’s seizures were occurring up to 55 times a day — every minute or two while he was awake, and every 10 to 15 minutes when he slept. His doctor prescribed him nine different medications over the course of three months, but none provided long-lasting relief. D...
When Andrea was 15, a CT scan showed an unusually large, dense mass in the back part of her brain - with a buildup of fluid. The imaging study revealed an unusually large, dense mass in the posterior fossa - the lower back of the skull containing the brain stem and cerebellum- with obstructive hy...
A small bump on the head during a game at his elementary school in Lufkin, Texas – at first Landon Courtney’s injury seemed minor. The seven-year-old was playing four corners in his P.E. class in early March 2016 when his feet got tangled with a classmate’s. He fell to the gym f...
Harper Lowery was born prematurely at 29 weeks 6 days, the larger of fraternal twins. A cranial ultrasound performed at 10 days of life revealed a bilateral intraventricular hemorrhage. With blood clots blocking the flow of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), Harper’s head began to enlarge to accomm...
A rare condition that occurs in 1 in 2,500 babies born in the United States, craniosynostosis changes the growth pattern of the skull by premature fusion of its fibrous sutures. Robert is among the 40% to 60% of cases in which the sagittal suture fuses earlier than normal. Thanks to his mother’s ...
At first Debra Johnson didn’t associate her 11-year-old son’s unusual behavior with seizure activity. He would go through periods of seeming spacey, and she couldn't figure the issue out. After an MRI revealed a small tumor in his right temporal lobe, the family was referred to Dr. David Sandberg...
Since Jamie Wright was a child, she has wanted to change the outlook for people who struggle with a diagnosis of hydrocephalus, which is the most common reason some children require brain surgery. Out of every 1,000 babies born in the U.S., about one to two are born with hydrocephalus, a conditi...
Much of neurology is detective work. Like good sleuthing, successful practice demands profound knowledge, honed investigative skills, persistence and a measure of artistry. In the case of Cristian Serrato, diagnosis and treatment of a challenging disorder required all of these talents and more. U...
A caring and informed mother, a knowledgeable physical therapist and an expert in the surgical management of spasticity have transformed the life of eight-year-old Darius Sonia. Born seven weeks early, Darius suffered an intraventricular hemorrhage in the first few days of life – a common occurre...
It was Daniel Turya’s eighth birthday and he couldn’t wait to take his new birthday gift from his parents out for a spin. It was a shiny new bike, and even though he didn’t have a helmet, he was just riding right outside of his apartment doorstep with his buddies. Soon after he got on, he acciden...
In May 2012, Cory Smith, a straight-A student and star basketball player at Clear Springs High School in Houston, suffered a severe intracranial empyema, an infection that arises most commonly as a complication of sinusitis or otitis, particularly in males in later childhood, adolescence or early...
Last December, an eight-member neurosurgical team extended their practice beyond the walls of Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital and McGovern Medical School at UTHealth to Haiti, where they spent four days on a medical mission to treat children with hydrocephalus. “Like all mission trips, we ha...
Savanna and her twin brother, Austin, were happy, healthy babies, but at about 6 weeks old, Savanna began having what episodes – short periods during which she would be nonresponsive and withdrawn. Nine months later, the Lininger’s made the decision to move to Houston to be closer to ...
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