Neuroanesthesiology
The Neuroanesthesiology Service within the Department of Anesthesiology of the University of Colorado School of Medicine fulfills the mission of providing optimal care to patients undergoing surgery of the central nervous system, endocrine system, and spinal column. Working in collaboration with our surgical colleagues from the Departments of Neurosurgery, Otorhinolaryngology, Orthopedics, and General Surgery, we provide evidence-based care including monitoring of neurologic function during anesthesia. The patient’s safety and comfort are our prime directives, and we strive to attain the best outcomes for these complex surgeries.
Our subspecialty service consists of eight fellowship-trained board-certified physician neuroanesthesiologists with additional special training in intraoperative monitoring of neurologic function, senior anesthesiology residents, neuroanesthesiology fellows, intraoperative neuromonitoring (IONM) technicians, certified Anesthesiologist Assistants, and Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists all with experience in the neurosurgical and spine surgery operating rooms. Two of our faculty are board- certified in neurocritical care.
The scope of care of our team ranges from operations on the head and neck to treat tumors of the thyroid and parathyroid glands, intracranial brain tumors, surgery of the cerebral blood supply, implantation of deep brain stimulating devices to treat movement disorders such as Parkinson’s Disease, epilepsy surgery, and surgery for spinal cord tumors and adult spinal column scoliosis and trauma. Our team will select the best approach to ensure safety, prepare for a comfortable recovery experience through the use of multimodal pain relief strategies, and implement strategies to minimize the risk of blood transfusion. We also provide care for patients in the interventional radiology suites who require neurologic monitoring to minimize the risk of injury during endovascular and image-guided procedures.
These procedures are performed in 6-8 neurosurgical and orthopedic spine operating suites per day with more than 4000 cases per year; an interventional neuroradiology suite; and an operating suite outfitted with a 3T MRI. If needed patients are cared for post-operatively in the 24-bed Surgical Trauma Intensive Care Unit or 24-bed Neurosurgical Intensive Care Unit.
The department has a dedicated team of scientists with National Institutes of Health funding for groundbreaking research in the neurosciences. Children’s Hospital Colorado has pediatric neurosurgeons on staff to provide a wide array of services to children from around the state and out-of-state referrals in the Rocky Mountain region.
The Department of Anesthesiology also sponsors a fellowship in neuroanesthesiology and intraoperative neurologic monitoring. The program is currently applying for certification from the International Council on Perioperative Neuroscience Training and we anticipate approval shortly.