The Rutgers Health Center for Skull Base and Endoscopic Surgery is one of the few centers in North America to provide comprehensive treatment of skull base and pituitary tumors using life-changing innovations. These innovations include:

• Keyhole microsurgical skull base approaches
• Laser surgery
• Minimally invasive endonasal endoscopic surgery
• Stereotactic radiosurgery

The center is also one of the first institutions in the United States to use the Dextroscope. The Dextroscope is a holographic simulator that takes computerized tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data, and reconstructs it into virtual 3-D models to optimize surgical planning and to simulate virtual surgery prior to operations. Tumors once thought to be inaccessible are now within reach for safe removal.

Skull Base Surgery: A Team Approach

Our multidisciplinary medical team safely removes skull base tumors while preserving neurological function and top cosmetic results. Our team combines the expertise of

• Endocrinologists
• Geneticists
• Head and neck surgeons
• Neurointerventionalists
• Neurologists
• Neuro-oncologists
• Neuro-ophthalmologists
• Neuro-otologists
• Neurosurgeons
• Orbital surgeons
• Plastic surgeons
• Radiation oncologists
• Rhinologists

Our patients also receive comprehensive, compassionate care from specialists in physical, speech, and respiratory therapy, as well as rehabilitation.

Endoscopic Skull Base Surgery

The center’s endoscopic skull base team concentrates on the safe removal of intracranial tumors, located underneath the base of the brain, through the nostrils by using endoscopes. This method avoids the need to make incisions on the head or face, and avoids having to open the skull with a craniotomy. The technique often results in quicker recovery and shorter hospital stays.

Acoustic Neuroma Program

The center’s Acoustic Neuroma program offers comprehensive care for patients with acoustic neuromas and other skull base tumors. An acoustic neuroma, also known as a vestibular schwannoma, is a noncancerous and often slow-growing tumor that develops on the main (vestibular) nerve leading from the inner ear to the brain. Patients receive leading-edge treatments including keyhole laser microsurgery, endoscopic-assisted surgery, and stereotactic radiosurgery, as well as procedures that preserve hearing.

Conditions We Treat

We provide comprehensive treatment of

• Acoustic neuromas
• Acromegaly
• Adenoid cystic carcinomas
• Brain stem tumors
• Cavernous sinus tumors
• Cerebrospinal fluid leaks
• Cholesterol granulomas
• Chondrosarcoma
• Chordoma
• Craniopharyngioma
• Cushing’s disease
• Dermoid tumors
• Encephalocoeles
• Epidermoid tumors
• Esthesioneuroblastoma
• Germ cell tumors
• Glomus jugulare tumors
• Glossopharyngeal neuralgia
• Hemifacial spasm
• Intraventricular tumors
• Jugular foramen schwannomas
• Jugular foramen tumors
• Juvenile nasopharyngeal angiofibroma
• Malignant sinonasal tumors
• Meningiomas
• Orbital tumors
• Petrous apex tumors
• Pineal region tumors
• Pituitary tumors
• Prolactinoma
• Rathke’s cleft cyst
• Sinonasal undifferentiated carcinomas
• Skull base tumors
• Squamous cell carcinomas
• Trigeminal neuralgia
• Trigeminal schwannomas
• Vestibular schwannomas

Physicians with the center are on the faculty of Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, a part of Rutgers University, one of the top research institutions in America. Our doctors are active in research and in teaching about all aspects of neurology and neurosurgery, and each brings life-changing knowledge from the classroom to the exam room.

If you or a loved one seeks surgical treatment for skull base or pituitary tumors, make an appointment with the Rutgers Health Center for Skull Base and Endoscopic Surgery program.