The 20 Best Awake Craniotomy Doctors near Ann Arbor, MI

Dr. Wajd Al-Holou was raised in southeast Michigan. After attending the University of Michigan Medical School, where he graduated with the highest award for research, he then began a 7-year Neurosurgery residency at the University of Michigan. Upon completion of residency in 2016, he completed a Complex Neurosurgical Oncology Fellowship at the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, TX. His training focused on the management of complex brain tumors, spinal tumors, and skull base malignancies.Dr. Al-Holou specializes in the management of complex brain tumors, primarily focusing on gliomas and metastases to the brain. Dr. Al-Holou has expertise in the use of awake mapping techniques, microsurgery, and image-guidance to maximize tumor removal in the safest possible manner. He also specializes in the management of meningiomas and spinal tumors.Dr. Al-Holou is the co-founder and co-director of the Michigan Medicine Multidisciplinary Brain Tumor Clinic (M3BTC). As a member of this Neuro-Oncology multidisciplinary team, he works strategically to ensure personalized treatment recommendations that will maximize the benefits for each individual patient.Currently, he is a member of the AANS/CNS Executive Committee of the Section on Tumors. He served as the Co-Chair for Tumor Section Scientific Program for the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) in 2018 and is a member of the Society of Neuro-Oncology. He also serves as an editor for cancer journal, BMC Cancer.Dr. Al-Holou is committed to research and education in Neurosurgery and his life-long goal is improving the survival and outcomes for patients with tumors. His research interest focuses primarily on understanding the genetic mechanisms of recurrence in glioblastoma, and in identifying precision medicine therapies to target resistant tumors. Dr. Al is rated as an Advanced provider by MediFind in Awake Craniotomy. He is also highly rated in 26 other conditions, according to our data. His clinical expertise encompasses Primitive Neuroectodermal Tumor (PNET), Posterior Fossa Tumor, Astrocytoma, Oligodendroglioma, and Awake Craniotomy. Dr. Al is board certified in Neurological Surgery.

Dr. Jason Heth attended The University of Iowa where he received his medical degree and also completed his residency in Neurosurgery. Dr. Heth then completed additional training in Skull Base Neurosurgery, completing a fellowship at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. After completing his fellowship, he joined the faculty of the University of Michigan. Dr. Heth specializes in brain tumor treatment, including surgical removal, radiosurgery, and basic research. His primary areas of interest focus on gliomas, glioblastoma, brain metastasis, and meningiomas. He is also involved in medical student education and quality improvement programs at the University of Michigan. Dr. Heth is rated as an Advanced provider by MediFind in Awake Craniotomy. He is also highly rated in 33 other conditions, according to our data. His clinical expertise encompasses Glioblastoma, Astrocytoma, Brain Tumor, Awake Craniotomy, and Gastrostomy. Dr. Heth is board certified in Neurological Surgery.

After completing his chief residency at the University of Virginia, Dr. Sagher accepted a position on the neurosurgical faculty at the University of Michigan. He became Chief of Neurosurgery at the Ann Arbor Veterans Administration Hospital, a position he held until 1996. He then completed a fellowship in Pain and Functional Neurosurgery at the Oregon Health Sciences University, and took over as the Director of Neuromodulation at the University of Michigan. As the primary functional neurosurgeon at the University of Michigan, Dr. Sagher takes care of such problems as epilepsy, pain, Parkinson's Disease and other movement disorders. Dr. Sagher is board certified by the American Board of Neurological Surgeons, and is a member of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) and the Congress of Neurological Surgeons (CNS). He has served on the Executive Council on the AANS/CNS Joint Section on Pain, which he chaired from 2003 to 2005. Special Interests: The treatment of epilepsy, pain, movement disorders, and brain tumors in functionally important regions. Dr. Sagher is rated as an Advanced provider by MediFind in Awake Craniotomy. He is also highly rated in 37 other conditions, according to our data. His clinical expertise encompasses Trigeminal Neuralgia, Meningioma, Seizures, Awake Craniotomy, and Microvascular Decompression. Dr. Sagher is board certified in Neurological Surgery.

David Altshuler is a Neurosurgery provider practicing medicine in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Dr. Altshuler is rated as an Advanced provider by MediFind in Awake Craniotomy. He is also highly rated in 48 other conditions, according to our data. His clinical expertise encompasses Pituitary Tumor, Rathke Cleft Cyst, Craniopharyngioma, Awake Craniotomy, and Extracranial-Intracranial Bypass Surgery.

Hugh Garton is a Neurosurgery provider practicing medicine in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Dr. Garton is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in Awake Craniotomy. He is also highly rated in 72 other conditions, according to our data. His clinical expertise encompasses Chiari Malformation, Chiari Malformation Type 1, Chiari Malformation Type 2, Posterior Fossa Decompression, and Gamma Knife Radiosurgery. Dr. Garton is board certified in Neurological Surgery.

Todd Hollon is a Neurosurgery provider practicing medicine in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Dr. Hollon is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in Awake Craniotomy. He is also highly rated in 19 other conditions, according to our data. His clinical expertise encompasses Pituitary Tumor, Prolactinoma, Brain Tumor, Awake Craniotomy, and Septoplasty.

Michael Karsy, MD, PhD, MSc, FAANS is a Clinical Assistant Professor of Neurosurgery at the University of Michigan. He completed his undergraduate degree with honors in Neuroscience at the University of California Los Angeles and a combined MD/PhD program at New York Medical College. He then completed residency in neurosurgery at the University of Utah under Dr. William Couldwell in 2020 with enfolded fellowship in Complex Spine Surgery with Dr. Andrew Dailey and Dr. Erica Bisson as well as a Masters of Bioengineering in Medical Device Development. And he completed a Skull Base fellowship at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital under Dr. James Evans in 2021.He practices at both the University of Michigan Health – Sparrow and University of Michigan Health – Ann Arbor. His primary focus is on neuro-oncology and skull base pathologies with specialization in endoscopic and minimally invasive approaches. He works as part of a large multi-disciplinary team managing neuro-oncology issues (e.g., pituitary adenomas, meningiomas, gliomas, vestibular schwannomas, metastatic disease). He also has an interest in spine management (e.g., minimally invasive spine surgery, cervical myelopathy, spine tumors, trauma, deformity). Dr. Karsy also currently serves as the Director of Clinical Operations and Quality at University of Michigan Health – Sparrow and previously served as faculty at the University of Utah and Drexel University College of Medicine.His research interests are in molecular characterization and targeted therapy of skull base pathologies, multi-institutional collaboration to advance skull base research, improving healthcare outcomes, and reducing surgical complications through improved integration of techniques and technology in neurosurgery. He has >200 publications, a dozen book chapters, and a surgical textbook. He has participated as a co-investigator and principal investigator on multiple clinical trials in neurosurgical trauma, critical care, and neuro-oncology. Dr. Karsy enjoys working with medical students, residents, and fellows both locally and nationally in a variety of research endeavors. He is currently active in the North American Skull Base Society among areas of organized neurosurgery.Dr. Karsy is Board Certified by the American Board of Neurological Surgery. He also speaks Persian and Spanish. In his spare time, he enjoys reading, movies, mountain biking, hiking, and spending time with his wife and two children. Dr. Karsy is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in Awake Craniotomy. He is also highly rated in 35 other conditions, according to our data. His clinical expertise encompasses Hypothalamic Tumor, Pituitary Tumor, Meningioma, Endoscopic Transnasal Transsphenoidal Surgery, and Thrombectomy.

Stephen Sullivan, M.D., is a graduate of the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine and is board certified in Neurosurgery. He is director of the Pituitary Clinic. His clinical and research interests pertain to the treatment of pituitary tumors, Cushing’s disease and acromegaly. Dr. Sullivan is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in Awake Craniotomy. He is also highly rated in 29 other conditions, according to our data. His clinical expertise encompasses Olfactory Neuroblastoma, Pituitary Tumor, Chordoma, Balloon Sinuplasty, and Awake Craniotomy. Dr. Sullivan is board certified in Neurological Surgery.

Additional Credentials:Division Chief, Rhinology and Skull Base SurgeryUniversity of Michigan Ross School of Business, 2012. Dr. Mckean is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in Awake Craniotomy. She is also highly rated in 12 other conditions, according to our data. Her clinical expertise encompasses Olfactory Neuroblastoma, Teratocarcinosarcoma, Sinus Cancer, Balloon Sinuplasty, and Turbinectomy. Dr. Mckean is board certified in Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery.

Robbi Kupfer is an Otolaryngologist practicing medicine in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Dr. Kupfer is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in Awake Craniotomy. She is also highly rated in 18 other conditions, according to our data. Her clinical expertise encompasses Recurrent Respiratory Papillomatosis, Spasmodic Dysphonia, Perichondritis, Laryngectomy, and Endoscopy. Dr. Kupfer is board certified in Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery.

Dr. B. Gregory Thompson was born in Kansas City, Missouri, the oldest son in a family of eleven children. Dr. Thompson attended Harvard College, where he played football and studied English and biology. He graduated from the University of Kansas School of Medicine and subsequently entered neurosurgery residency training at the University of Pittsburgh, where he did elective rotations in neurology at Queen Square in London, England, and as a Medical Staff Research Fellow at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland.Following his residency in Pittsburgh, Dr. Thompson did a neurovascular and skull base surgery fellowship at the Barrow Neurological Institute and began his academic career at the University of Utah. He was then recruited to the University of Michigan.After 10 years in practice, Dr. Thompson recognized that the rapid technological and clinical development of interventional neuroradiology was a force rapidly changing cerebrovascular surgery and training, and so he returned to training as a fellow in Endovascular Neurological Surgery (ENS) at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia.Upon returning full time to the University of Michigan in 2005, he became Vice Chairman of the Neurosurgery Department and established a curriculum for neurosurgery resident education in ENS. He also subsequently established a “dual training” cerebrovascular fellowship which encompasses both endovascular and advanced microsurgical techniques.Working also with a cranial base team of six otologists at Michigan, Dr Thompson has operated more than 1,000 patients with vestibular schwannomas, and their Michigan team has reported significantly improved hearing preservation results with the Middle Fossa Approach.Dr. Thompson received the University of Michigan’s Medical Student Award for Teaching Excellence in Neuroscience, the University’s Outstanding Clinician Award, and was an inaugural member of the University’s League of Clinical Excellence. He was honored with the Cerebrovascular Section’s Alfred J. Luessenhop Award in Cerebrovascular Surgery in 2011, and was appointed as a Director of the American Board of Neurological Surgery in 2012. He currently serves as the Chair of the ABNS. Dr. Thompson and his wife Ramona have 7 children and reside in Ann Arbor.50813181. Dr. Thompson is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in Awake Craniotomy. He is also highly rated in 28 other conditions, according to our data. His clinical expertise encompasses Brain Aneurysm, Subarachnoid Hemorrhage, Acoustic Neuroma, Thrombectomy, and Gastrostomy.

Omar Qahwash is a Neurosurgery provider practicing medicine in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Dr. Qahwash is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in Awake Craniotomy. He is also highly rated in 17 other conditions, according to our data. His clinical expertise encompasses Stroke, Subdural Hematoma, Brain Aneurysm, Transmyocardial Revascularization, and Stent Placement. Dr. Qahwash is board certified in Neurological Surgery.

Preeti Misra is an Internal Medicine provider practicing medicine in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Dr. Misra is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in Awake Craniotomy. Her clinical expertise encompasses Heart Failure with Preserved Ejection Fraction (HFpEF), Liver Failure, Gallbladder Disease, Endoscopy, and Colonoscopy.

Ahmad Issawi is a Neurosurgery provider practicing medicine in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Dr. Issawi is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in Awake Craniotomy. He is also highly rated in 4 other conditions, according to our data. His clinical expertise encompasses Arachnoid Cysts, Cervical Spondylosis, Spondylolisthesis, Microdiscectomy, and Herniated Disc Surgery.

Jayesh Thawani is a Neurosurgery provider practicing medicine in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Dr. Thawani is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in Awake Craniotomy. He is also highly rated in 1 other condition, according to our data. His clinical expertise encompasses Subdural Hematoma, Chronic Subdural Hematoma, Metastatic Brain Tumor, Laminectomy, and Awake Craniotomy.

James Liu is a Physiatrist practicing medicine in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Dr. Liu is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in Awake Craniotomy. He is also highly rated in 5 other conditions, according to our data. His clinical expertise encompasses Rathke Cleft Cyst, Klippel-Feil Syndrome, Cushing's disease, Endoscopic Transnasal Transsphenoidal Surgery, and Endoscopy.

Geoffrey Thomas is a Neurosurgery provider practicing medicine in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Dr. Thomas is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in Awake Craniotomy. He is also highly rated in 2 other conditions, according to our data. His clinical expertise encompasses Meningioma, Radiation Induced Meningioma, Spondylolisthesis, Septoplasty, and Bone Graft.