FELLOWSHIP IN
STEREOTACTIC, FUNCTIONAL, AND EPILEPSY NEUROSURGERY

CAST-accredited

We are proud to offer a premier CAST-accredited comprehensive clinical fellowship in Stereotactic, Functional, and Epilepsy Neurosurgery with the Division of Epilepsy and Neuromodulation Neurosurgery at Thomas Jefferson University. During this fellowship, you will gain experience in the evaluation, surgical treatment, and follow-up of patients with epilepsy, movement disorders, and chronic pain under the guidance of Drs. Ashwini Sharan and Chengyuan Wu.

The training curriculum follows the “Matrix Curriculum” developed by the Society for Neurological Surgeons, which details the skills necessary for a neurosurgeon to become competent in the area of stereotactic and functional neurosurgery. The fellow will also benefit from exposure to advanced technologies including a stereotactic robot, intraoperative CT, and two laser ablation systems.

CLINICAL EXPERIENCE

Annual Surgical Volumes

Craniotomy

for temporal lobectomy

for other lobe resections

Laser ablation

Stereoelectoencephalography (sEEG)

Responsive neurostimulation (RNS)

Vagal nerve stimulation (VNS)

Deep brain stimulation (DBS)

Spinal Cord Stimulation

Trial

Permanent implant

Dorsal root ganglion stimulation

Intrathecal pumps

20+

10+

15+

8-10

5-10

50-60

40-50

60-70

5-10

20-30

Epilepsy

The Comprehensive Epilepsy Center at Thomas Jefferson University remains one of the busiest surgical epilepsy programs in the country and offers a broad clinical experience to the fellow. During weekly multidisciplinary surgical epilepsy conferences, patients are evaluated for procedures including vagal nerve stimulation, stereoelectroencephalography, implantation of grid and strip electrodes, temporal lobectomy, focal resection, corpus callosotomy, laser ablation, and responsive neurostimulation. We also are partnered with Nemours Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children, where we perform many of these procedures, as well as hemphispherotomies.

There is a weekly multidisciplinary surgical epilepsy conference each Monday from 8:30-10:00am.

Movement Disorders

The movement disorder program at Thomas Jefferson University offers deep brain stimulation and ablative procedures to patients suffering from Parkinson’s Disease, Essential Tremor, and Dystonia. We perform both awake microelectrode recording guided DBS implantation as well as asleep image-guided image-verified DBS implantation.

There is a monthly multidisciplinary surgical movement disorder conference every 1st Monday of the month from 4:00-5:00pm.

Chronic Pain & Spasticity

In collaboration with interventional pain management physicians, we select, trial, and implant a variety of spinal cord, occipital nerve, supraorbital nerve, dorsal root ganglion, and sphenopalatine ganglion stimulators. Working with both pain management and rehabilitation medicine, we also implant intrathecal pain pumps for the management of chronic pain or refractory spasticity, respectively.

OTHER FELLOWSHIP EXPERIENCE

Research

During the course of your fellowship year, you will be expected to participate in research relevant to Epilepsy and Neuromodulation Neurosurgery. We would like for this work to be presented at a national or international scientific meeting; and for it to develop into published manuscripts.

Research Meetings:

EN2 Research Meeting

Jefferson Integrated Magnetic Resonance Imaging Center Meeting

Epilepsy Research Meeting

every 4th Monday of the month

every Wednesday

every 2nd & 4th Friday of the month

7:30-8:30am

1:00-3:00pm

5:00-6:00pm

Practice Building

An understanding of how Epilepsy and Neuromodulation Neurosurgery fits into the modern medical landscape is becoming increasingly important. As such, we believe that skills of practice development are an important part of the fellowship curriculum.

In this spirit, you will work on socioeconomic research in order to better understand the impact a certain disease, or technology, or procedure has on the healthcare system.

Community presence and education is important in running a successful practice. As such, we believe that it is important to be involved in events aimed at increasing the visibility of the practice to patients or to physicians.

There is a monthly EN2 practice meeting every 2nd Monday of the month from 7:30-8:30am.

Education

As part of the residents' academic curriculum, the fellow will be expected to provide education on the surgical treatment of epilepsy, movement disorders, and chronic pain. This includes giving a Grand Rounds lecture on a topic of your choice within the realm of Epilepsy and Neuromodulation Neurosurgery.

Scientific Meetings

You will work with Drs. Sharan and Wu to determine which conferences you will be attending. Acceptance of an oral presentation will help to facilitate your attendance.

Broadening your Experience

We believe that exposure to other surgical techniques is not only an important part of your education; but also a way to enhance the techniques used in Epilepsy and Neuromodulation Neurosurgery in the United States. Drs. Sharan and Wu will help organize a trip during which you can learn unique surgical techniques.

CURRENT AND ALUMNI FELLOWS

Residency

Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai

Current Position

UMass Memorial Health Care

CONTACT US

For more information and to apply to the fellowship, please use the form below, or email Dr. Wu.

909 Walnut Street
Third Floor
Philadelphia, PA 19107

Chengyuan.Wu@jefferson.edu

FELLOWSHIP IN STEREOTACTIC, FUNCTIONAL, AND EPILEPSY NEUROSURGERY

CLINICAL EXPERIENCE

Annual Surgical Volumes

Epilepsy

Movement Disorders

Chronic Pain & Spasticity

OTHER FELLOWSHIP EXPERIENCE

Research

Practice Building

Education

Scientific Meetings

Broadening your Experience

CURRENT AND ALUMNI FELLOWS

Islam Fayed, MD

​

Christopher Miller, MD

Michael Kogan, MD, PhD

Caio Matias, MD, PhD

Christian Hoelscher, MD

Jonathan Riley, MD

Michael J. Lang, MD

Chengyuan Wu, MD, MSBmE

Farid Hamzei-Sichani, MD, PhD

CONTACT US

FELLOWSHIP IN
STEREOTACTIC, FUNCTIONAL, AND EPILEPSY NEUROSURGERY