Cutting-edge technology is helping patients with brain and balance issues learn to adjust their movements to become more stable – and more confident when walking. Ataxia is a type of poor muscle control that can affect everything from walking and eye-hand coordination to speech and swallowing. It is typically [...]
Exercise is good for your body, but did you know that those benefits also extend to your brain? “Exercise improves the function of your cardiovascular, respiratory, muscular, skeletal and nervous systems, all of which support your brain's health and ability to do its job,” says CentraState neurosurgeon Mark McLaughlin, [...]
Gary Triolo’s workday started like any other – going through paperwork, checking email and answering calls – until his world suddenly started spinning out of control. “I looked up and the room started to spin to the left in slow motion,” explains Gary, who serves as the director of Food [...]
Rutgers University wrestling coach Jordan Pagano, 27, was recently demonstrating simple wrestling moves with a student-athlete, something he does regularly. When he placed his hands on the mat to change positions, the unexpected happened: he ruptured a disc in his neck. The herniated disc pushed on Jordan’s spinal cord, [...]
Anyone who lives with or cares for someone with Parkinson’s disease or essential tremor knows there are good days and not-so-good days. But what if you could directly stimulate or calm the area of the brain causing the tremor? Essential tremor is a neurological disorder that causes involuntary and [...]
Andrew Ferrara was a three-sport high school athlete when he suffered a football injury that permanently sidelined his athletic career. He herniated two discs in his back as a teen. At the time, the surgery to repair it was risky. So instead, he wore a brace to stabilize his [...]
Adapting to the changes in life after suffering a stroke is challenging to say the least. There are new medications, therapies, and doctors one must see, not to mention the physical and emotional needs when recovering from a stroke. But patients recovering from stroke don’t need to do it [...]
A string of falls and a car accident left Whiting resident Nanette Neves in constant agony. Plagued with numbness and pain in her leg and lower back, she endured eight years of treatments to manage the pain. When she had trouble getting out of bed, she knew it was [...]
While it is often associated with misconceptions, electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is a specialized treatment that can be very effective in certain people struggling with severe depression and certain other behavioral health conditions not helped by medication or psychotherapy. Moustafa H. Shafey, MD, a board-certified psychiatrist on staff at CentraState, [...]
When Freehold resident John Russo fell after a progressive decline in his ability to walk, he figured he’d have to endure another joint replacement surgery. But he was shocked to learn that a serious spinal condition was causing his pain—and partial paralysis. John, 54, was in the Navy during [...]
