A Rich History of Neurosurgery Innovation

Professor and former Neurosurgery Department Head Dr. Stephen Haines chronicled 75 years of department history in an article published in the May 2014 issue of Neurosurgery. Here is a snippet of what Dr. Haines had to say:

"Neurosurgery began as a distinct discipline at the University of Minnesota in 1937 with the appointment of William Peyton as head of the division. Under the leadership of Peyton, Lyle French, and Shelley Chou, the Department rose to national prominence. Substantial contributions included the introduction of dexamethasone to the practice of neurosurgery by Galicich and French, early procedures for the transthoracic correction of spinal deformity, important contributions to the understanding of brain death, the early laboratory work that led to the development of nimodipine, one of the first intraoperative magnetic resonance imaging facilities in the United States (1996), and the training of many academic neurosurgeons and department chairmen. The challenges of managed care and more recent changes in the health care system have been met, and the Department is a thriving clinical, educational, and research center for 21st-century neurosurgery."

Full Article