Department of Neurosurgery

Pediatric neurosurgery gains increasingly recognition as a sub-discipline of neurosurgery. Not only deals pediatric neurosurgery with specific disease patterns in childhood, even the "regular neurosurgical" diseases often show distinctive features when occurring in children or adolescents. That has to be taken into consideration upon treatment. Furthermore, a specific, child-oriented interaction with the pediatric patient is necessary at all times.

Typical "pediatric neurosurgical diseases" are congenital deformities and developmental disorders of the nervous system. Furthermore, brain tumors at child’s age differ from those in adults concerning localisation and type as well as in respect of diagnosis und treatment. Diseases which require functional neurosurgical treatment (e.g. epilepsy and spasticity) in children demand a close collaboration of several specialties which can only be provided in specifically equipped medical centers.

In close interdisciplinary collaboration with the departments of neurosurgery, neuropediatrics, pediatric oncology, radiotherapy, epilepsy center and neuroradiology, the Medical Center - University of Freiburg offers the whole range of pediatric neurosurgery.

On the following pages you will find information about the following pediatric disorders:

• Congenital deformities of the skull
  • Craniosynostosis/Craniostenosis
• Congenital deformities of the brain and meninges
  • Arachnoid cyst
  • Chiari malformation
  • Dandy Walker malformation
• Congenital deformities of the spine and the spinal cord
  • Spina bifida occulta
  • Spina bifida aperta (meningocele and meningomyelocele)
• Hydrocephalus
  • obstructive Hydrocephalus
  • malresorptive Hydrocephalus
• Tumors
• Epilepsy
• Spasticity