BarrowNeurological

When Dr. Sengua Koipapi's mother lost consciousness during the birth of her fourth child, she was transported about 20 miles to the nearest health facility—by wheelbarrow. Seeing her recovery as a young boy inspired Dr. Koipapi to pursue a career in medicine, and he later enrolled in the medical school where his mother was treated. Having grown up in a rural village in East Africa, Dr. Koipapi hadn't been exposed to life outside of the Maasai tribe. He found integrating into the culture of medical school to be a challenge—just one of many the #aspiringneurosurgeon has tackled with courage. "You always have to look at what you want to achieve and see the kind of impact you want to bring into the world, and that should help you enough to persevere, even during difficulties," said Dr. Koipapi, who was our first neurosurgery observer funded by the Franke Global #Neuroscience Education Center at #BarrowNeurologicalInstitute. "So your personal determination, put in all the hard work that is necessary, and inspire yourself by seeing the difference that you are going to bring." Hear more about courage from Dr. Koipapi, Barrow faculty and trainees, and guest #neurosurgeons Drs. Kevin T. Foley and @TedSchwartz13 by watching our latest episode of #BarrowNeurosurgeryBaseCamp: BarrowNeuro.org/BaseCamp.

Now enrolling people with and without amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (#ALS) for a longitudinal biofluids collection and at-home clinical outcomes study. Learn more: bar.rw/targetals

We're excited to share that a #medicalillustration from #BarrowNeurologicalInstitute is on the cover of this month's issue of @TheJNS: #Spine! The illustration was created by Ann Mai in the Barrow #Neuroscience Publications department and depicts cage migration after multilevel LLIF with posterior fixation (left) and stand-alone multilevel LLIF (right). The figure accompanies a paper from Barrow titled: "Cage migration in multilevel stand-alone lateral lumbar interbody fusion: incidence and clinical correlations." Authors: Jonathan J. Lee, MD @JuanPGiraldoMD Nafis B. Eghrari, BS Katriel E. Lee, MD Joseph M. Abbatematteo, MD, PharmD Gabriella P. Williams, MD Jay D. Turner, MD, PhD @thejuansuribe Read the March 2026 issue and the paper at TheJNS.org.

@mtlawton @Kcmc1971 @SupportBarrow

When Dr. Sengua Koipapi's mother lost consciousness during the birth of her fourth child, she was transported about 20 miles to the nearest health facility—by wheelbarrow. Seeing her recovery as a young boy inspired Dr. Koipapi to pursue a career in medicine, and he later enrolled in the medical school where his mother was treated. Having grown up in a rural village in East Africa, Dr. Koipapi hadn't been exposed to life outside of the Maasai tribe. He found integrating into the culture of medical school to be a challenge—just one of many the #aspiringneurosurgeon has tackled with courage. "You always have to look at what you want to achieve and see the kind of impact you want to bring into the world, and that should help you enough to persevere, even during difficulties," said Dr. Koipapi, who was our first neurosurgery observer funded by the Franke Global #Neuroscience Education Center at #BarrowNeurologicalInstitute. "So your personal determination, put in all the hard work that is necessary, and inspire yourself by seeing the difference that you are going to bring." Hear more about courage from Dr. Koipapi, Barrow faculty and trainees, and guest #neurosurgeons Drs. Kevin T. Foley and @TedSchwartz13 by watching our latest episode of #BarrowNeurosurgeryBaseCamp: BarrowNeuro.org/BaseCamp.

Thank you to the National Organization for Rare Disorders (@RareDiseases) Student Chapter at @ASU for having Barrow Chief Scientific Officer Robert Bowser, PhD, as a speaker for #RareDiseaseDay! As an internationally recognized leader in #amyotrophiclateralsclerosis (ALS) research, Dr. Bowser gave a virtual presentation about this rare neurological disease. He discussed the challenges of studying #ALS and how the ALL ALS Consortium is addressing those obstacles. Led by #BarrowNeurologicalInstitute and @MGHMedicine, the National Institutes of Health (@NIH)-funded ALL ALS Consortium aims to disrupt the traditional research landscape for ALS by making its data and samples available to researchers around the world, through both a web-based portal and a central biorepository. These open science practices will help pave the way for transformative discoveries in the field, bringing hope to the ALS community. This enthusiastic group of students brought thought-provoking questions, and we were proud to provide mentorship to these future #raredisease leaders.

Watch this #SevenSeries video showing this T1-3 thoracic laminectomy, midline myelotomy, resection of spinal cord ependymoma, on our website @BarrowNeuro by clicking on this link… Bar.rw/7series.

Spinal cord ependymomas are straightforward to remove when there’s a defined border between tumor capsule and cord, but sometimes they are adherent & difficult to separate from cord, as in this case. The keys: debulk first, collapse capsule inward, work the plane…

Here's an article to go with today's #SevenSeries video.... pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37854657/

@UCSF 🎨: Dani VanBrabant, Barrow Neuroscience Publications

We're excited to announce our Friday keynote speaker for the Barrow #Neuroscience Symposium: Dr. Adam Gazzaley of @UCSF, who will discuss his research into technology-based experiences as medicine for the mind. Join us in #Phoenix, #AZ May 13-15: bar.rw/neurosymposium….

New study in #ALS! 🚨Researchers from @MGHNeurology and colleagues found an experimental therapy shows benefits and safety in patients with ALS. Read more in @JAMANeuro: massgeneralbrigham.org/en/about/newsr… jamanetwork.com/journals/jaman…

The 2026 @Paralympics closed yesterday, & @TeamUSA finished 2nd with 24 medals. ICYMI: Kaitlyn Verfuerth, a 4x #Paralympian & a #recreationtherapist at Barrow, led a torch relay throughout our campus to kick off the games. Watch the @12News segment: bar.rw/torchrelay2026.

From the summit of a mountain to scuba diving on the ocean’s floor, Alexandra Wikiera spends most of her days off from dental school seeking adventure. Given her active lifestyle, it doesn’t appear as though the 21-year-old has undergone major #spinesurgery—and she says it doesn’t feel like it either. “Dr. Kakarla told me I should be in almost full motion after my surgery, and it was true,” Alexandra said. “I’m basically the same person as before.” The same person, just with two 10-inch titanium rods and 18 pedicle screws in her mid-back. Kumar Kakarla, MD, a neurosurgeon at #BarrowNeurologicalInstitute in #Phoenix, #Arizona who specializes in complex spine surgery for #scoliosis and other spinal deformities, performed a #spinalfusion on eight levels of Alexandra’s thoracic spine during the summer of 2022. Alexandra was 17 years old at the time and had received a diagnosis of scoliosis only a year before. "I would not change what I did for anything," said Alexandra, who now lives in Poland. "The surgery has not only benefited me now but also myself for the future.” Read the full story at bar.rw/alexandra.

I’m pleased to share that our systematic review on spheno-orbital meningiomas, conducted at @BarrowNeuro , has been published in @FrontiersIn in Oncology🔥 In this study, we systematically evaluated the possible association between hormone therapy and the development and progression of spheno-orbital meningiomas, a complex skull base pathology with both intraosseous and soft-tissue components. Our review suggests that long-term exposure to progestins may contribute to SOM development and progression, while cessation of hormone therapy can lead to partial regression, particularly in soft-tissue components. Despite these observations, surgical resection remains the primary treatment strategy, and prospective evidence guiding clinical decision-making remains limited. This work highlights the need for better characterization of hormone-related tumor biology and standardized clinical management strategies for SOM patients. Congratulations to all co-authors, particularly to our brilliant summer med student Jarett Prince. 🔗 doi.org/10.3389/fonc.2… #Neurosurgery #NeuroOncology #Meningioma #SkullBaseSurgery #HormoneTherapy #SystematicReview #BarrowNeurologicalInstitute #Frontiers

Want to learn the latest in #neurorehab technology? Join us Friday, March 27 at noon PDT/Arizona time for our next "Neurology in the News" webinar. This free series offers the public the chance to pick the brains of our world-renowned experts. Register: bar.rw/inthenews.

Barrow is recruiting adults living with #amyotrophiclateralsclerosis (ALS) & their caregivers for a comprehensive survey assessing the needs & perspectives of the #ALS community. To sign up, please reach out to Fulton.Research@CommonSpirit.org or visit redcap.link/alsneedsbni.

The Barrow Neuroimaging Innovation Center is building a database of healthy volunteers to participate in MRI research studies. Interested in volunteering? Simply fill out this form: bar.rw/bnicsurvey. Questions? Contact us: (602) 406-6253 or BNIC-Research@CommonSpirit.org

Lowering your #bloodpressure now may reduce your risk of developing #dementia later, according to guidelines from @american_heart & @ACCinTouch. Dr. Anna Burke of Barrow joined @arizonapbs to discuss the relationship between blood pressure & #brainhealth: bar.rw/burkepbs.

Watch this #SevenSeries video showing this L pterional craniotomy, clipping of high-riding, sessile, ruptured anterior communicating artery aneurysm with down-curved clip, on our website @BarrowNeuro by clicking on this link… Bar.rw/7series.

Aneurysm rupture comes w/“textbook” story: headache that comes suddenly & intensely – 11 on a scale from 1 to 10. But sometimes it’s so bad that patients collapse & don’t come in until they're found on the ground, like this patient. But youth, surgery, therapy have led to her full recovery…