History

The history of neurologic and neurosurgical Innovation at The Johns Hopkins Hospital begins with the institution's opening in 1889.

In the early 1900s Harvey Cushing, “the father of neurosurgery,” performed the first successful operations for brain tumors. In 1937 Walter Dandy performed the first aneurysm clipping.

A dedication to understanding the nervous system through research and how it can impact clinical care has defined Johns Hopkins Neurology and Neurosurgery since the very beginning.

The Special Field is a new history of Johns Hopkins' Department of Neurosurgery and tells the fascinating story of its impact on groundbreaking discovery and treatment. Learn more.

Share in the story of our faculty throughout the years through this interactive timeline.

Our team quickly emerged as leaders with research on how the brain reacts to injury and with inventions such as the use of X-rays to guide brain surgery.

A half-decade later, when Johns Hopkins neurologists and neurosurgeons discovered that strokes, brain and nervous system disorders and injuries, present such distinct problems, that only specialized intensive care can save patients, they pioneered the first dedicated neurological critical care unit (NCCU) in the country.

Each year, we provide over 30,000 outpatient consultations and perform more than 4,000 brain, tumor, vascular, and peripheral nerve operations.

Our internationally renowned faculty, strengthened by our tradition of sharing of ideas across disciplines and melding laboratory-based and clinical research, offers patients remarkable new diagnostic capabilities and therapies.

For brain tumor patients, for example, they can receive not only standard treatments, but also novel techniques to deliver radiations, chemotherapy, vaccines and gene therapy.

The Johns Hopkins Hospital has led to mortality rates that are among the lowest anywhere in the world.

Johns Hopkins has emerged as one of the most comprehensive neurological centers of its kind, diagnosing and treating a large breadth of adult and pediatric neurological diseases and conditions.

Today, The Johns Hopkins Hospital is laying the foundation for more medical advancements, including, the opening of our new state-of-the-art buildings.

We commit ourselves to providing excellent patient care through individualized treatment plans. We continue to build on our mission to not only integrate research, education and patient care, but advance the fields of neurology and neurosurgery, often one patient at a time.

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