Pediatric Neurosurgery | UC Davis Children's Hospital

Pediatric Neurosurgery

Advanced clinical care and surgical interventions

Our pediatric-trained neurosurgeons are experts in disorders and injuries of the brain, spinal cord and nervous system in children.

Conjoined twins who were separated.
Dr. Zweinenberg with Dr. Sharma and Dr. Sadegh and APPs

Pediatric neurosurgery

Our neurosurgery specialists at UC Davis Children’s Hospital are committed to setting the standard for the surgical treatment of infants and children with neurologic diseases.

Neurosurgical problems seen by pediatric neurosurgeons are often quite different from those commonly seen by adult or general neurosurgeons. Because pediatric neurosurgical problems often are present for life, children with nervous system problems frequently require close, ongoing follow-up from childhood—sometimes as early as the newborn period—through the teenage years. As a result, pediatric neurosurgeons have special, long-term relationships with their patients and their families.

Conditions we treat

In cooperation with pediatric experts across other specialties, our pediatric neurosurgeons provide advanced clinical care and surgical intervention for children suffering from diseases that affect the developing brain, spinal cord, and peripheral nervous system, including:

  • Brain tumors
  • Cerebrovascular disorders
  • Chiari malformation and syringomyelia
  • Complex spinal disorders and congenital spine anomalies
  • Craniofacial anomalies and craniosynostosis
  • Epilepsy
  • Hydrocephalus
  • Movement Disorders (including dystonia, essential tremor, juvenile Parkinson's disease)
  • Pituitary disorders and tumors
  • Spasticity
  • Spina bifida (including fetal repair)
  • Spinal Cord tumors
  • Traumatic brain and spine injury
An important distinctionA level I Children’s Surgery Center
ACS badge

UC Davis Children’s Hospital was the first hospital on the West Coast, and only the fourth in the nation, to earn verification as a level I Children’s Surgery Center by the American College of Surgeons (ACS), the world standard bearer for surgical quality.

Level I centers have children’s surgeons in every discipline, with pediatric anesthesiologists and dedicated operating rooms for children available 24 hours a day.

A closer look at the surgery center