Our brain powers our bodies, propels our curiosity, defines our personality and holds our memories. So discovering that you or someone you love has a brain or spine disorder is understandably scary. Fortunately, advances in medicine have brought positive outcomes, and renewed hope to those struck by an acute or chronic illness.

Providence Brain Institute is a comprehensive, integrated center of excellence treating all conditions of the brain and spine. Our recognized specialists are a partner in your treatment and recovery, providing advanced medical expertise and compassionate care.

Comprehensive care 
Providence Brain Institute treats brain and skull-base disorders, as well as stroke, peripheral nerve disease, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), epilepsy, and other brain and spine disorders. Our neurology services diagnose a wide range of problems, such as headache or dizziness, and work with experts from a variety of disciplines to design a treatment and rehabilitation plan just for you.
 
Advanced medicine
Our specialists are skilled in the latest surgical procedures, including minimally invasive techniques that are easier on the patient and speed recovery. The Brain Institute also provides access to the best technologies:

• Opening later this year, the world’s most advanced moveable MRI and the first on the West Coast. The iMRI allows greater precision for brain surgeries.
• Gamma Knife Perfexion, the most advanced model in the Northwest. It can destroy a tumor nonsurgically with pinpoint accuracy.

• Neuro biplane laboratory, designed just for Providence, for complex and detailed treatment of stroke and aneurysm.

Research and discovery
Researchers at Providence Brain Institute are evaluating the treatments of the future. Through clinical trials and research in multiple sclerosis, stroke, Alzheimer’s disease, epilepsy and ALS (also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease), patients benefit from new drugs and procedures that may bring a cure for their neurological disease.

Find your brain and spine specialists here

Please contact us at:

9135 S.W. Barnes Road, Suite 363
Portland, OR 97225
Phone: 503-216-1055
E-mail: BrainInstitute@Providence.org

Map/directions  

What’s happening

Dr. Rosenbaum speaks about Coping with Parkinson’s disease
Join us for this educational lecture, part of Think * Feel * Function: A learning series about your mind and nervous system. Richard Rosenbaum, M.D., medical director at Providence Center for Parkinson’s Disease, and Janis Denning, physician’s assistant, present the latest research for Parkinson’s disease.  They will provide guidance on self-care and coping with common symptoms such as falls, depression, low energy, sleep disturbance and hallucinations.

Thursday, Aug. 20, 2009, from 7 to 8:30 p.m.  
Crowne Plaza, 14811 Kruse Oaks Drive, Lake Oswego

The presentation is free, but registration is requested. Please register online or call the Providence Resource Line, 503-574-6595.

Fast action saves a bus rider with a stroke

A quick-thinking driver and rapid response by medical teams saved a woman who suffered a potentially fatal stroke on a Tri-Met bus in Southeast Portland Feb. 16. The woman, a 69-year-old caregiver, was rushed to Providence Portland Medical Center after the driver saw her slumped on the floor. Lisa Yanase, M.D., removed the clot using a Merci Retriever corkscrew device inserted through a catheter. The woman had some mild impairment, but was recovering well when interviewed by KGW-TV. “It’s wonderful to have a good outcome like this,” Dr. Yanase said. “This is the reason I get up at 3 in the morning to come to the hospital.”

Think you know the signs of stroke? Act FAST.

A pill for MS symptoms?
Multiple sclerosis patients who must give themselves shots to control their symptoms may soon benefit from a pill, thanks to continued research.

Pacific Northwest MS Registry (formerly the Oregon MS Registry)
If you are over age 18 and have been diagnosed with MS, you can help MS research and advocacy by registering online today or call 503-216-1022.

We’re structured to give you better care
In fact, Providence Health & Services is the most integrated health care network in Oregon, according to a January report by a national health care research firm. Providence ranks seventh in the nation for coordinated patient care among its hospitals, clinics and other services. Integration measures include high quality standards, information sharing, efficient technology, clinical expertise and other attributes that improve patient care.

Artificial discs: Relief for extreme back pain
Disc damage can be an agonizing condition, but there is hope with the latest surgical option: artificial discs. Listen to Todd Kuether, M.D., medical director of Neurointerventional Services, talk about artificial discs and which types of patients are candidates for surgery.

New intraoperative MRI on track
Brain surgery to remove a tumor has always been a delicate art. Take too much tissue and risk damaging vital functions; take too little and the remaining tumor could spread. This is why Providence is anticipating the arrival of the world’s most advanced moveable intraoperative MRI, to be installed this summer at Providence St. Vincent Medical Center. The moveable magnet takes scans of the brain while the patient is still on the operating table, allowing greater surgical precision and, ultimately, better outcomes. See how the iMRI surgical suite works.