Neurologic Conditions We Treat

The UPMC neurology team provides care for a full range of neurological disorders that affect your nervous system, which includes your brain, spinal cord, and nerves.

Find the Right Care For You

Conditions we treat include:

Dementia and Memory Disorders

• Alzheimer’s disease — A type of dementia, Alzheimer’s disease is a neurodegenerative disorder that damages the nerve cells in the brain.
• Amnesia — A condition that occurs when you have significant memory loss, such as being unable to remember important events, people, or details about your life.
• Corticobasal degeneration — Also called corticobasal syndrome, corticobasal degeneration is a rare, progressive neurological disorder that causes loss of independence and the ability to speak, remember, move, think, and reason over time.
• Frontotemporal dementia — Refers to a group of neurodegenerative brain disorders caused by nerve cell damage in the brain's frontal lobes (behind the forehead) and temporal lobes (behind the ears).
• Lewy body dementia — Occurs when proteins called Lewy bodies accumulate in the brain and impair thinking, movement, mood, behavior, and sleep.
• Vascular dementia — A decline in memory and thinking skills caused by reduced blood flow to your brain.

Epilepsy and Seizure Disorders

• Absence (petit mal) seizures — Cause staring spells that typically last less than 15 seconds.
• Atonic (drop) seizures — Also known as drop seizures or drop attacks, atonic seizures occur when abnormal electrical activity in your brain causes you to lose consciousness and muscle tone.
• Epilepsy — A brain disorder that causes repeated, unpredictable seizures, generally beginning in childhood or early adulthood.
• Focal seizures — Caused by abnormal electrical activity that is limited to a specific area on one side of your brain. In some cases, they can spread to both sides of your brain.
• Myoclonic seizures — Cause brief, uncontrollable jerking or twitching of the muscles, usually in one muscle or several nearby muscles.
• Tonic-clonic seizures — Sometimes called grand mal seizures, tonic-clonic seizures come on suddenly and cause muscle stiffness, involuntary jerking or shaking movements, and loss of consciousness.

Headache Disorders

• Cluster headaches — A rare type of headache that occurs suddenly and is often severe.
• Migraine — A recurring, pulsing headache caused by swollen blood vessels in the head.
• Sinus headache — Also called a congestion headache, it is a side effect of sinusitis (sinus infection).
• Tension headache — The most common type of headache, tension headaches cause dull, aching pain on both sides of your head.

Movement Disorders

• Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) — Also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, ALS is a rare, terminal neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the spinal cord and brain.
• Apraxia — Apraxia is a neurological condition that affects your ability to perform tasks or movements.
• Dystonia — Writhing or twisting movements caused by involuntary muscle contractions.
• Essential tremor — Involuntary trembling movements.
• Parkinson’s disease — A movement disorder that affects the parts of your brain that control motor function (body movement).
• Restless leg syndrome — Causes an irresistible urge to move your legs when resting that is often accompanied by sensations such as creeping, crawling, tingling, or aching.

Neuroimmune Disorders

• Chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP) — A rare, chronic autoimmune condition that gradually damages the myelin sheath that covers your peripheral nerves.
• Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) — A rare autoimmune disorder that happens when your immune system mistakenly attacks the myelin sheath, which covers your peripheral nerves. 
• Multiple sclerosis (MS) — A progressive autoimmune disorder that occurs when your immune system mistakenly attacks the myelin sheath, which covers the nerves in your brain and spinal cord. 
• Myasthenia gravis — A chronic autoimmune disease that causes muscle weakness and fatigue.
• Myelin ogliodendrocyte glycoprotein antibody disease (MOGAD) — A rare autoimmune disorder that occurs when your immune system mistakenly attacks myelin oligodendrocyte glycoproteins found in the myelin sheath, the protective cover that surrounds the nerves in the brain, spinal cord, and eyes.
• Myelitis — A rare condition that causes inflammation of the spinal cord that damages the protective covering of nerve cells, called the myelin sheath.
• Neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD) — Also known as neuromyelitis optica (NMO), NMOSD is a rare autoimmune disorder that occurs when your immune system mistakenly attacks the protective covering of your nerves called the myelin sheath, causing damage to the nerves in your eyes and spinal cord.
• Optic neuritis — Occurs when the optic nerve — the part of your eye that transmits visual information from your eye to your brain — becomes inflamed.
• Stiff person syndrome — A rare, progressive neurological disorder that causes muscle spasms and stiff muscles in the torso, arms, and legs.
• Transverse myelitis — A rare condition that causes inflammation of the spinal cord.

Neuromuscular Disorders

• Huntington’s disease — An genetic (inherited) progressive brain disorder that leads to uncontrolled movements and difficulties with balance, walking, speaking, swallowing, thinking, and regulating emotions.
• Motor neuron disease — Refers to a group of progressive neurological disorders that cause damage to your motor neurons, a type of nerve cell that controls muscle movement.
• Multiple system atrophy — A rare, progressive, and fatal neurological disorder that causes nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord to deteriorate over time.
• Muscular dystrophy — A group of genetic diseases that cause progressive muscle weakness and degeneration.

Nerve Disorders

• Myelopathy — A condition that occurs when your spinal cord is compressed, causing pain, numbness, tingling, and movement problems in different parts of your body.
• Peripheral neuropathy —  Occurs when the nerves that carry information between your spinal cord and the rest of your body are damaged and don’t function properly.
• Progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) — A rare neurological disorder that damages the nerve cells in the brain that control thinking, body movements, and eye movements.
• Radiculopathy — Also known as a pinched nerve, radiculopathy occurs when a nerve root in your spine becomes compressed or irritated, causing pain, numbness, or tingling.

Brain Disorders

While neurosurgeons treat these brain disorders with a variety of minimally invasive and traditional open procedures, we treat the neurologic complications of these conditions, including:

• Acquired hydrocephalus — The buildup of cerebrospinal fluid within the brain that leads to increased pressure inside your skull, causing headaches, seizures, and memory issues.
• Brain aneurysm — Also called a cerebral aneurysm, a brain aneurysm occurs when a weak spot in a brain artery balloons out and fills with blood. We can assist in establishing a family aneurysm history and ordering imaging tests to confirm aneurysm, and refer patients to neurosurgery for repair.
• Chiari malformation — Occurs when part of your brain called the cerebellum extends down into your spinal canal through a natural opening called the foramen magnum or another abnormal opening. This condition may cause headaches, which we can monitor and refer to neurosurgery for decompression surgery.
• Meningioma — Tumors that start in the membranes that protect your brain and spinal cord. We can diagnose this condition and refer patients to neurosurgery for tumor removal and treatment.
• Neurofibromatosis — A rare genetic condition that causes multiple benign (noncancerous) tumors called neurofibromas to form in the brain, spinal cord, and nerves.

Other Conditions

• Vertigo — A symptom of other health conditions that causes dizziness and makes you feel like you are moving or spinning — or that your surroundings are spinning around you.
• Wilson’s disease — A rare genetic disorder that prevents the body from removing excess copper, causing organ damage, neurological symptoms, and psychiatric problems. We treat the neurological symptoms of this non-neurologic condition.

Why Choose UPMC for Neurology Care?

When you choose UPMC for neurology care, you will receive:

• State-of-the-art diagnostics and monitoring — We offer advanced diagnosis and care for neurological conditions, including advanced imaging and monitoring.
• Advanced, comprehensive treatment — Our neurologists and advanced practice providers are committed to helping you manage all aspects of your neurological disorder. We participate in national and international clinical trials, bringing promising therapies to our patients years before they become available at other centers.
• Coordinated care — Our team members will work closely with other health care providers to coordinate your care and connect you with the additional services you need.