The American Board of Pediatric Neurological Surgery (ABPNS) certifies
pediatric neurosurgeons.
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Neurosurgery for
Infants and Children
The following excerpt is taken from Chapter 3 of Hydrocephalus: A
Guide for Patients, Families, and Friends by Chuck Toporek & Kellie
Robinson, copyright 1999 by O'Reilly & Associates, Inc. For book
orders/information, call 1-800-998-9938. Permission is granted to print
and distribute this excerpt for noncommercial use as long as the above
source is included. The information in this article is meant to educate
and should not be used as an alternative for professional medical
care.
Infants and children with hydrocephalus have a different set of primary
care needs, are more prone to having learning disabilities, and can lag
behind in social activities. Because neurosurgeons who concentrate on
pediatric care attend to more infants and children than other
neurosurgeons, they are more capable of meeting the patient's and the
family's needs for physical, emotional and psychological care.
Over the past few years, neurosurgeons who predominantly treat
pediatric patients (children and infants) organized the American Board
of Pediatric Neurological Surgery (ABPNS). Although not yet recognized
by the ABMS as a medical specialty, ABPNS began certifying pediatric
neurosurgeons in 1996. A list of board certified pediatric
neurosurgeons is updated on the Internet at:
http://www.abpns.org/
Under the proposed petition, candidates who apply for certification
as a pediatric neurosurgeon will have to meet one of the following
criteria to become board certified:
- Complete an accredited post-graduate fellowship in pediatric
neurosurgery as outlined by the Accreditation Council for Pediatric
Neurosurgical Fellowships, Inc.
- Successfully complete the written examination of the ABPNS.
- Acquire certification by the American Board of Neurological
Surgery (ABNS) or the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of
Canada (RCPSC).
- Submit surgical logs indicating a practice of pediatric
neurosurgery for the year prior to submitting their application. These
logs must demonstrate that 75 percent of their cases were age 21 or
under, or they must have treated 125 patients who were below the age of
12.
Under the proposed petition, certification will also be considered for
senior neurological surgeons who have established themselves as
practitioners of pediatric neurosurgery and have:
- Had the requirement for accredited fellowship training waived
by a special review of the ABPNS.
- Successfully completed the examination in pediatric
neurosurgery, which is given by the ABPNS.
- Acquired certification by the ABNS or the RCPSC.
- Submitted surgical logs indicating a practice of pediatric
neurosurgery for the year prior to submitting their application. These
logs must demonstrate that 75 percent of their cases were age 21 or
under; or they must have treated 125 patients who were below the age of
12.
Since pediatric neurosurgery is a specialty, you may want to consider
having this kind of specialist operate on your infant or child. If your
child's neurosurgeon is not certified by the ABPNS, ask the
neurosurgeon how much of his practice is with infants and children, and
how many shunt operations for hydrocephalus he does in a year.
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