Siva Sriharan, MD, intimately knows and respects the spinal cord. It's notoriously intolerant of injury, and has a mind of its own. While encased in the bony armor of the vertebral column, the spinal cord is not just nerves, but also an organ. More than 60% of Bay's neuroscience cases involve this thin ribbon of fatty tissue that is "our life."

Dr. Sriharan has equal reverence for the brain, an organ like no other. The brain is our diary, our calendar, our Blackberry, our I-Phone. If its directional signals are compromised, so are we. We are unable to think, process information, follow directions, or express creativity.
"It is here where Bay Neurosciences would like to do more," says Dr. Sriharan, "by destroying aneurysms with clips or coils, removing brain tumors, evaluating and repairing trauma of closed head injuries, and preventing swelling of the brain."

The new neurosurgical suites are equipped with a frameless stereotactic BrainLab and precise intraoperative navigation, providing 'real time' feedback of where surgeons are in the brain. "I have always been able to think three-dimensionally, and the equipment enhances that ability," says Dr. Sriharan. "You must have patience and know the best pathway in, and exactly how to proceed, so the patient has the best chance for a highly functional recovery."

All four physicians at Bay Neurosurgery Associates have extensive experience in removing or resecting tumors. They perform fusions, laminectomies, and resection of spinal tumors. "We also receive many referrals for khyphoplasties," says Dr. Sriharan.

Osteoporosis, a slow leaching of calcium from the bone, can cause fractures most commonly found among older women. Osteoporosis can cause painful curvature of the spine, resulting in what is sometimes referred to as a dowager's hump. Kyphoplasty is a procedure used to treat these painful spinal compression fractures.

"We enter the spine with two small needles, and insert two balloons, which are inflated to reduce the fracture, and restore more normal spinal alignment," explains Dr. Sriharan. "We remove the balloons, and the small cavity in the fractured vertebra is filled with medical grade cement to stabilize the spine." For the osteoporosis patient, the relief is almost immediate.

One only has to see the effects of a major spinal cord injury or stroke to understand why patients are encouraged to:

• have regular carotid screenings, take blood pressure medications (if prescribed), and to report any seizures immediately;
• wear helmets for all extreme supports -- that includes skiing, motorcycling, bicycling, horseback riding, snowboarding, and hockey;
• buckle up every time they get in the car;
• use proper bending and lifting techniques.

"All of us try to put ourselves in the patient’s shoes, because patients and family members often ask: ‘What would you do if it was your family member?’" stresses Dr. Sriharan. "It is important that we have the patient’s trust, so we carefully consider the diagnosis, and what can be done.

"That’s why we spend so much time discussing possible outcomes. If a patient has multiple medical problems, it’s our obligation to tell them that the procedure could worsen their condition, and make them dependent on others. Then again, the surgery could give them more mobility or function. We can give them the medical facts, but we can’t make the decision for them."