Neurotrauma Division

The Neurotrauma Program, based at University of Cincinnati Medical Center, involves the surgical care of patients who have suffered traumatic brain injury (TBI) or spinal cord injury (SCI.) Neurotrauma surgeons who treat these patients work directly with neurointensivists.

Clinical services are provided in the neuroscience intensive care unit (NSICU) and acute care unit. The NSICU is a 20-bed, state-of-the-art unit with full cardiopulmonary monitoring capabilities and additional specialized monitoring options for brain pressure and oxygenation, cerebral microdialysis and electrophysiology.

The NSICU’s features include substations located close to patient rooms, enabling the highly skilled nursing staff to observe patients at all times. Five full-time dedicated intensivists provide attending coverage in close collaboration with out neurotrauma tam. Our Neurotrauma team members include fellows, residents, critical care nursing staff, pharmacists, respiratory therapists and medical students.

The Neurotrauma Center is served by University Air Care, a helicopter transport system that is nationally recognized for excellence in emergency trauma care. The Center also works closely with Daniel Drake Center for Post-Acute Care, the area’s leading long-term rehabilitation facility.

The high volume of cases seen at University of Cincinnati Medical Center, combined with an emphasis on aggressive patient management, provides the residents and fellows with unsurpassed training and experience in critical care and neurotrauma surgery. Residents learn the fundamentals of neurocritical care during their first year of training while working directly, one on one, with neurointensivists.

Exposure to the operative intervention of neurotrauma patients also begins during PGY1. Treatment responsibilities increase gradually throughout the residency, in accordance with the resident’s capabilities and experience.

The Neurotrauma division has accelerated its participation in clinical trials, in a collaborative approach through the UC Health Neurotrauma Center. Recent clinical trials included involvement in large, multi-center TBI and SCI initiatives such as Track-TBI and Boost-3. UC Neurosurgery currently leads the field in the identification and treatment of spreading depolarizations (brain tsunamis) after TBI. Additionally, faculty have research projects focused on improving care after neurotrauma.

These trials—and others that have not yet begun—will keep the neurotrauma program at the forefront of the neuro-critical care field.