UCSF Neurosurgery at AANS 2026

AANS International Brain Mapping Program
Practical Clinic
6:45 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Course Director: Mitchel Berger, MD
Presentations: 

• Functional Circuit Overview: Language Organization

  7:45 to 8 a.m.

  Speaker: Edward Chang, MD

• ECoG Detecting of Speech Networks and Their Correlations to Direct Stimulation Mapping
  11 to 11:15 a.m.

  Speaker: Shawn Hervey-Jumper, MD

• Operating Room Set up and Flow of Personnel
  10:30 to 10:45 a.m.

  Speaker: Jacob Young, MD

• How I Do It: Brain Mapping

  Noon to 1:50 p.m.

  Speaker: Mitchel Berger, MD

• Postoperative Assessment & Management of Deficits
  1:50 to 2 p.m.

  Speaker: Jacob Young, MD

Regis W. Haid Jr. Leadership Symposium: Tier 1 Operators in Spine, Business, and Special Forces Symposium
Moderator and speaker: Praveen Mummaneni, MD
Case Presentation: Motion Preservation versus Fusion (Arthroplasty versus ACDF)
9:10 to 9:29 a.m.

Unilateral Biportal Endoscopy
Riding the Wave of Spine Endoscopy: Why, When and How (and a Little How Not to)
9:32 to 9:42 a.m.
Speaker: Jang Won Yoon, MD

Trauma Capturing True Work in the Emergency Setting
Ethical and Accurate Coding: A Case-Based Guide for Neurosurgeons
10:57 to 11:12 a.m.
Speaker: Anthony DiGiorgio, DO

Hands On/Learning Stations
Riding the Wave of Spine Endoscopy: Why, When and How (and a Little How Not to)
12:30 to 4 p.m.
Speaker: Jang Won Yoon, MD

VR/AR for Intra-operative Navigation & Screw Placement
Incorporation of Virtual Reality and Artificial Intelligence into Spinal Neurosurgical Practice
1:08 to 1:23 p.m.
Speaker: Jang Won Yoon, MD

Does Surgery Reduce Neck Pain and Restore Independence 5 Years After Surgery for Cervical Spondylotic Myelopathy (CSM)? A SpineCORe QOD Study
Plenary II
11:11 to 11:19 a.m.
Speaker: Praveen Mummaneni, MD

Complication Avoidance, Recognition, and Management of Complex Tumor Cases
2 to 3:30 p.m.
Moderator: Mitchel Berger, MD

Modern Approaches to Spinal Deformity: The MIS Paradigm and Top Scoring Abstracts from QOD SpineCORe™
2 to 3:30 p.m.
Session moderator: Praveen Mummaneni, MD; Speaker: Jang Won Yoon, MD

Does Extending Fusion From Two to Three Levels Affect the Cost-Effectiveness of Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusion for Cervical Spondylotic Myelopathy?: A 5-Year QOD Spine CORe Study
Ownership and Employment in Neurosurgery: Evolving Practice Models
2:49 to 2:51 p.m.
Speaker: Jay Kumar, MD, UCSF spine fellow

In-Hospital Complications Are Predictors of Unfavorable Functional Outcome After Moderate to Severe Traumatic Brain Injury Across 12-Months: A TRACK-TBI Study Across 18 United States Trauma Centers
Trauma Paper Posters
2:45 to 3:30 p.m.
Presenter: John Yue, MD

Neuro Worsening from a Normal Glasgow Coma Scale Motor Score in the Emergency Department: An Early Indicator of Traumatic Brain Injury Severity and Predictor of Neurosurgical Intervention
Trauma Paper Posters
2:45 to 3:30 p.m.
Presenter: John Yue, MD

Cells, Vaccines, and Viruses Debate: CAR-T
The Next Frontier of Surgical Neuro-Oncology: Biologics and Beyond
4:18 to 4:25 p.m.
Speaker: Hideho Okada, MD, PhD

Adult Deformity Surgery: Principles, Practice, and Advances and the Top Scoring Abstracts from QOD SpineCORe™
4 to 5:30 p.m.
Moderator: Praveen Mummaneni, MD; Speaker: Niall Buckley, MD, UCSF spine fellow

Rapid Fire: Spine
4 to 5:30 p.m.
Session moderator: Nima Alan, MD; Speaker: John Yue, MD

Signatures of Cognitive Loss in Glioma
Tumor Paper Posters
4 to 4:45 p.m.
Presenter: Gray Umbach, MD, UCSF neurosurgery resident

Can We Quantify the Quality of Life Gains and Cost-Effectiveness at 5 Years After Surgery for CSM? A QOD SpineCORe™ Study (Robert Florin Award)
Quality, Confidentiality and Liability in Modern Practice: Legal, Ethical and Data-Driven Perspectives
4:51 to 4:57 p.m.
Speaker: Hunter Yamada, UCSF medical student

How Much Do Patients Benefit in Quality of Life After Surgery for Cervical Spondylotic Myelopathy? A QOD Study
Quality, Confidentiality and Liability in Modern Practice: Legal, Ethical and Data-Driven Perspectives
5:01 to 5:03 p.m.
Speaker: Vardhaan Ambati, MS, UCSF medical student

A Zone for Speech Production Within Wernicke’s Area
Plenary IV
10:32 to 10:40 a.m.
Speaker: Alexander Silva, PhD

Cervical Deformity Correction
“How To” Spine Videos: Step by Step Approach to Mastery
2:03 to 2:12 p.m.
Speaker: Lee Tan, MD

Unfolding the Brain: Electrophysiological and Anatomic Evidence of Functional Axonal Sprouting After Pial Removal Across the Interhemispheric Fissure in Mice
Stereotactic & Functional Rapid Fire Abstracts
2:36 to 2:38 p.m.
Speaker: Daniel Quintana, UCSF medical student

Does Preoperative Embolization Help to Lower Surgical Blood Loss in Nonvascular Metastatic Spine Tumor Surgery?
Spine Paper Posters
4 to 4:45 p.m.
Presenter: Vardhaan Ambati, MS, UCSF medical student

Endoscopic TLIF: Ready for Prime Time
Everything MIS: New Technology, Techniques, Reimbursement
4:03 to 4:11 p.m.
Speaker: Jang Won Yoon, MD

A Zone for Speech Production within Wernicke’s Area (Philip L. Gildenberg MD Resident Award)
Advances in Epilepsy Surgery
4:12 to 4:27 p.m.
Speaker: Alexander Silva, PhD, UCSF medical student

MIS Procedures in Complex Surgery -- Pushing Limits? (Deformity and Scoliosis, Revision Surgery, Corpectomy)
Everything MIS: New Technology, Techniques, Reimbursement
4:30 to 4:38 p.m.
Speaker: Nima Alan, MD

Collaborative Approaches to Sarcoma Treatment in Nerve Surgery
Innovation, Collaboration, Transformation in Peripheral Nerve Surgery
4:31 to 4:43 p.m.
Speaker: Line Jaques, MD

A Multimodal Functional Atlas Reveals Region-Specific Cytoarchitecture in Human Superior Temporal Gyrus
Advances in Epilepsy Surgery
4:44 to 4:49 p.m.
Speaker: Anthony Lee, MD, PhD, UCSF neurosurgery chief resident

What Determines Patient Satisfaction After Surgery for Grade II Lumbar Spondylolisthesis? A QOD SpineCORe Analysis
Top Scoring Scientific Abstracts
4:51 to 4:55 p.m.
Speaker: Nima Alan, MD

Utility of MRI and CSF Cytology for Surveillance in Medulloblastoma: A Multicenter Cohort Study
Advances in the Understanding of Hydrocephalus and Pediatric Rapid Fire Abstracts
5:07 to 5:09 p.m.
Speaker: Zain Peeran, UCSF medical student

Electrocorticographic Detection of Speech Networks in Glioma-infiltrated Cortex
Tumor Rapid Fire Abstracts
5:18 to 5:20 p.m.
Speaker: Vardhaan Ambati, MS

Tumor Wars II: Neuro-Onc Jeopardy-The Encore
5:45 to 6:45 p.m.
Team leader: Manish Aghi, MD, PhD

Guidelines: Evidence-Based or Expert Consensus
Debates in Neurotrauma
8:22 to 8:42 a.m.
Speaker: Anthony DiGiorgio, DO

How to Start a Lab
Strategic Career Development in Neurosurgery: From Fellowship to Faculty
8:27 to 8:37 a.m.
Speaker: Manish Aghi, MD, PhD

Panel Discussion
Strategic Career Development in Neurosurgery: From Fellowship to Faculty
8:37 to 8:47 a.m.
Speaker: Manish Aghi, MD, PhD

Degenerative Spine Spine
M&M: Case Presentations, Thoughtful Reflections, and Strategies for Avoidance
8:45 to 8:54 a.m.
Speaker: Lee Tan, MD

Why: Contrasting Outcomes in Glioma Molecular Subtypes
Redefining Brain Tumor Surgery Through Intra-Operative Molecular Testing
8:50 to 9 a.m.
Speaker: Jacob Young, MD

Cranial Neurotrauma Case
Ask the Experts: Case-Based Discussions in Neurotrauma
9:45 to 10:15 a.m.
Speaker: Anthony DiGiorgio, DO

Spinal Neurotrauma Case
Ask the Experts: Case-Based Discussions in Neurotrauma
10:15 to 10:45 a.m.
Speaker: Anthony DiGiorgio, DO

Surgical Treatment of TBI
How to Pass the Oral Boards: Mastering Neurotrauma & Critical Care Scenarios
10:20 to 10:35 a.m.
Speaker: Anthony DiGiorgio, DO

Glioma Difficult Cases
Difficult Cranial Cases: Case Presentations, Surgical Nuances and Complication Avoidance Strategies
10:44 to 10:52 a.m.
Speaker: Jacob Young, MD

Penetrating Cranial Neurotrauma Case
Ask the Experts: Case-Based Discussions in Neurotrauma
10:45 to 11:15 a.m.
Speaker: Anthony DiGiorgio, DO

Interactive Panel: Pearls, Pitfalls, and Case- Based Discussion
Minimally Invasive Cranial Tumor Surgery: Endoscopic and Parafascicular Approaches
10:48 to 11:13 a.m.
Speaker: Manish Aghi, MD, PhD

Cervical Fracture Subluxation
Difficult Spine Cases: Case Presentations, Surgical Nuances, and Complication Avoidance Strategies
11:05 to 11:14 a.m.
Speaker: Anthony DiGiorgio, DO